Current:Home > reviewsAn Englishman's home has flooded nearly a dozen times in 7 years. He built a wall to stop it from happening again. -FutureFinance
An Englishman's home has flooded nearly a dozen times in 7 years. He built a wall to stop it from happening again.
View
Date:2025-04-20 08:00:44
Nick Lupton's riverside home in Worcester, England, has been flooded nearly a dozen times in just seven years. To stop it, he built a massive wall that surrounds his home.
Lupton and his wife, Annie, have lived near the River Severn in a 17th-century house on property worth more than $765,000, according to local news outlet Gloucestershire Live. And since 2016, their one acre of land and home has flooded 11 times, Lupton told multiple news agencies.
Exhausted by the multiple clean-ups they have had to do over the years, Lupton and his wife spent spent months building a wall to protect their home in the high-risk flood zone, he told CBS News partner BBC.
"After we had, I think it was nine floods, before we decided to build a wall," Lupton told Reuters. "And the wall is really there to make our lives easier, but also to protect the house long term. Having flood water up to the walls of a house is never going to be good."
They finished the wall mid-September, and when it was put to the test a month later by a flood, Lupton said it stood up to the challenge – and continues to do so.
"Thankfully it did what it was supposed to do. It passed the test," he said, adding that it also helped prevent damage when it was tested again this week. "... It's been a very good test in many ways because it's one of the highest floods we've ever had."
There are hundreds of flooding alerts across England as of Friday afternoon local time, including more than 250 warnings that flooding is expected, and nearly 270 more saying flooding is possible. The U.K.'s Met Office has warned that the River Severn is expected to have flooding impacts through at least Friday and Saturday, although it could continue for "several days" in some parts.
Of the 30 measuring stations across the river, 18 recorded "high" levels on Friday, with the measuring station in Worcester recording a height of 18.2 feet and rising as of 4:30 p.m. local time on Friday – just shy of the all-time station record of 18.99 feet recorded in 2020. The normal range of water levels at this location is between 1.8 and 11 feet.
Lupton believes there are "a lot of factors" playing into the flooding at his home – including climate change.
Winters in the United Kingdom are "projected to become warmer and wetter on average," the Met Office says on its website, adding that within 50 years, winter will be up to 4.5 degrees Celsius warmer and up to 30% wetter.
"Heavy rainfall is also more likely," the office says. "Since 1998, the UK has seen six of the ten wettest years on record. The winter storms in 2015 were at least 40% more likely because of climate change. ... Parts of the U.K. will be in danger of flooding, with low lying and coastal cities at particular risk."
- In:
- Climate Change
- Flooding
- United Kingdom
- Flood
Li Cohen is a social media producer and trending content writer for CBS News.
veryGood! (9469)
Related
- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Hi Hi!
- Princess Charlene and Prince Albert of Monaco Make Rare Appearance At King Charles III's Coronation
- In the Philippines, Largest Polluters Face Investigation for Climate Damage
- Global Programs Are Growing the Next Generation of Eco-Cities
- How to watch new prequel series 'Dexter: Original Sin': Premiere date, cast, streaming
- Polar Vortex: How the Jet Stream and Climate Change Bring on Cold Snaps
- I’ve Tried Hundreds of Celebrity Skincare Products, Here Are the 3 I Can’t Live Without
- Tennessee woman accused of trying to hire hitman to kill wife of man she met on Match.com
- NHL in ASL returns, delivering American Sign Language analysis for Deaf community at Winter Classic
- Here's What Prince Harry Did After His Dad King Charles III's Coronation
Ranking
- Toyota to invest $922 million to build a new paint facility at its Kentucky complex
- Whatever happened to the Indonesian rehab that didn't insist on abstinence?
- Obama Administration Halts New Coal Leases, Gives Climate Policy a Boost
- Volkswagen relaunches microbus as electric ID. Buzz
- NFL Week 15 picks straight up and against spread: Bills, Lions put No. 1 seed hopes on line
- Why The Bladder Is Number One!
- Virginia graduation shooting that killed teen, stepdad fueled by ongoing dispute, police say
- Mystery client claims hiring detective to spy on Reno Mayor Hillary Schieve is part of American politics
Recommendation
US appeals court rejects Nasdaq’s diversity rules for company boards
HIV crashed her life. She found her way back to joy — and spoke at the U.N. this week
House Oversight chairman to move ahead with contempt of Congress proceedings against FBI director
House GOP rules vote on gas stoves goes up in flames
Federal court filings allege official committed perjury in lawsuit tied to Louisiana grain terminal
How Kate Middleton Honored Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Diana at Coronation
Despite its innocently furry appearance, the puss caterpillar's sting is brutal
Today’s Climate: June 4, 2010