Sidmouth: Exhibition of Beer's flood history set to open

A free exhibition of historic flood photographs and maps of Beer and surrounding area is being held at The Mariners' Hall in Fore Street, Beer, thanks to the Environment Agency, Beer Emergency Response Team and The Westcountry Rivers Trust.

Residents and visitors are invited to come along to the event on 28 July 2022 from 10am to 4pm and share their experiences or just take in the photographs on display.

Chris Khan, a flood resilience officer at the Environment Agency, said: "We are hosting this event because your neighbourhood is at risk of flash flooding. This type of flooding happens extremely quickly with potentially devastating impacts as seen in Beer and Boscastle in 2004 and Coverack in 2017.

"More than 750 people attended a similar exhibition in Sidmouth in 2018 and over 500 in Colyton in 2019. Both were an amazing success with people coming from all over the country. The photographs are a real eye-opener and leave you questioning how you would react."

While the Environment Agency hopes attendees will leave with the information they need to prepare, act, survive, Beer Emergency Response Team hopes to attract new members to support its newly created Community Emergency Plan for the village.

Westcountry Rivers Trust will also display posters on some of its work done in the area and share potential solutions and opportunities to improve Beer's waterways and increase its resilience against flooding.

Refreshments will be available.

Find out how you can reduce the impact of flooding on your home at www.befloodready.uk

Flooding in Beer in the 1950s (Environment Agency)

A brief history of flooding in Beer

• 17 July 1926. Practically every house in the village was flooded within the space of a few minutes. The Dolphin Hotel was flooded to several inches.
• 5 August 1931. Flood water poured down the hillsides into the main thoroughfare. Little damage was done. No rain fell at Colyford which is not far away.
• 15 July 1937. Several cottages and houses flooded.
• 16 July 1956. The observer at Beer said that an inch probably fell in 15 minutes. There was some flooding and damage in the village.
• 1 July 1985. Surface water flooding in Fore Street - watercourse overflowed - water coming up through the drainage systems of properties.
• 15 May 1994. A number of properties and businesses affected.
• 18 June 1996. At least seven properties affected.
• 25 August 1999. Fore Street flooded.
• 11 August 2004. Significant flooding and damage in the village. At least 18 properties flooded.
• June and October 2021. The most recent flooding to occur in the village.