Four Lincolnshire Roads still closed following Storm Henk

Lincolnshire County Council said that there are just a handful of flood damaged roads left to reopen after Storm Henk at the beginning of January.

Lincolnshire was among the worst affected areas by recent storms Babet and Henk, the former of which saw a record 450 incidents reported across the county.

A total of 38 properties that were impacted by Storm Babet were also hit by Storm Henk, with a total of 124 properties feeling the internal brunt of Henk in Lincolnshire.

The roads were also an area of concern for these extreme weather periods, most notably at Dunham Bridge, where the road was closed for a full week after water made its way onto the tarmac and restricted access across the bridge.

Since then, more roads have gradually been reopening to free up Lincolnshire’s transport routes, and the next of those reopenings is expected to take place next week.

Lincolnshire County Council confirmed the road closure at Short Ferry was due to be lifted on Monday, January 29 — as long as unforseen circumstances or more extreme weather doesn’t take place.

Crews remain on site to monitor the situation between Fiskerton and Stainfield conducting assessments to ensure the road is ready to be opened up to the public once more.

Richard Fenwick, Head of Highways Asset at LCC said: “With the weather that’s forecast over the next 48 hours, and the extensive work carried out by crews on site, it is looking as though we may be able to get the road open again on Monday.”

This means that as of Monday, there will be three roads left for highways to reopen to return the roads network to its full pre-Storm Henk operations.

They are on Main Street, Scredington, Wykes Lane Donington, and Watermill Lane in Nettleham.

The council was unable to confirm timescales for their reopenings, but it is understood that the wait should not be too much longer.

Wykes Lane at Donington closed as a result of a collapsed culvert, rendering the road unusable while tarmac is dug up to address this issue.

Storm and flood defence is at the forefront of the county council’s budget agenda for the coming years.

Council Leader Martin Hill called flooding an “ongoing and constant threat” to Lincolnshire, and says the council will be writing to central government to request more flood defence funding and attempt to “influence” the upcoming Spring Budget Announcement.

Coun Hill said the decision to recommend a 5% council tax increase for the county’s 2024/25 budget was, in part, down to “an expectation” that additional funds go towards protection from future flooding.

Coun Colin Davie, portfolio holder for environment and economy, called for more resources to be made available in the fight against climate change, which has seen two flooding incidents hit Lincolnshire in the space of just three months.

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He said: “Quite clearly, the events of the last few months have taught me, with environment in my portfolio, that we’re going to need more resources to deal with some of the challenges related to climate change, causing flooding incidents.

“Two major incidents in three months is putting a considerable amount of pressure and burden on the system.”