A COUNCILLOR whose ward bore the brunt of yesterday's flooding is seeking an urgent meeting with officials after their "disappointing" response to the emergency. Up to 100 homes were flooded in Wirral forcing dozens of residents to leave after "a month's rain fell in 48 hours." The worst affected area was Moreton where torrential downpours caused the River Fender and River Birket to burst their banks adding to already high water levels. The area's councillor Chris Blakeley said he was "disappointed" with the response both from Wirral Council and the Environment Agency. He is pressing for a meeting with the town hall's chief officer in charge of environmental protection and flood-prevention, along with executives from the Government agency. Councillor Blakeley said: "We cannot allow this lack of response to happen again. "We need to draw up an action plan so we're prepared and are able to offer assistance. "There was a strong response from the community - residents went down to the local builder's yard and bought two tonnes of sand to make their own sandbags - but it wasn't really matched by the council. "It's all very way for 'a council spokesperson' to say it's not their job to provide sandbags - but people look to their local authority for help, advice and guidance at times of crisis. "I feel the council should have been more involved and more helpful. "These were exceptional circumstances requiring an exceptional response." A Wirral Council spokeswoman told the BBC last night that the volume of water was caused by "exceptional rainfall" since Saturday. "There is very little we can do about it, other than to clear the roads as quickly as possible. The surface water drainage systems and the main rivers only have a finite capacity. "We are working hard with our contractors to clear a number of flooded roads across the borough, but sheer volume of water caused by exceptional rainfall last Saturday and on Tuesday and Wednesday has meant that river levels at main water courses are high and causing some localised flooding." Some families spent the night in emergency accommodation and were returning to their homes this morning to inspect the damage.
Up to a hundred homes have been flooded in Wirral, in Moreton, and many have been forced to evacuate, after "a month's rain fell in 48 hours". The worst affected area was in England where rain burst the banks of River Fender and the River Birket, which were already at high levels. Residents have heavily criticised the lack of response from Wirral Council and the Environment Agency in dealing with the floods.