WIREDGOV

The Environment Agency is encouraging people to help their neighbours and communities by becoming flood wardens.

Flood wardens are key in helping their community to be prepared for flooding, acting as a link between their community and the responding organisations, and playing a vital role of a community’s response before, during, and after a flood.

Working in partnership with Kent Fire & Rescue and the Kent Resilience Team, the Environment Agency are delivering a training session for all new flood wardens. The Environment Agency are particularly keen to hear from people who live in Canterbury, Ashford, Whitstable, Faversham, Seasalter, the Isle of Sheppey, Hythe, Dymchurch, St. Mary’s Bay, Deal, Folkestone, and Herne Bay.

As part of the training, the flood wardens are getting an inside perspective into the work of the Environment Agency and its partners. They will also find out about the Flood Warning Service, warning and informing arrangements, emergency planning structures, and response arrangements.

Luke Thompson, Environment Agency Flood Officer, said:

So far, we have recruited 160 flood wardens for the Kent area, many of whom were in communities affected by flooding in 2013/14. It is essential to start increasing flood resilience for those communities at risk who didn’t flood during that winter.

With this training we would like to give them more resilience, support and self governance. To make the communities more aware of the vulnerable situation they are in and to fully prepare them for a flood incident by helping them to develop a flood warden network.

We are keen to encourage members of communities at flood risk to volunteer to help their community and neighbours in times of flooding by becoming a flood warden. If you are interested in volunteering as a flood warden to support your local community, please email KRF.Events@kent.fire-uk.org or call 01622 212409.

The next flood warden training will be on Saturday 18 July at the Lenham Community Centre, 9.30am to 2pm. Location: Lenham Community Centre, Groom Way, Lenham, ME17 2QT.