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| London Road the Volunteer public house is on the right |
I have mentioned before that Northwich is prone to flooding.
I remember my Dad taking me into town in the 1960's to see the flood water in London Road close to the Regal Cinema. The cinema had a large mural on the wall of the foyer depicting the flood of February 1946 (the cinema opened in 1939). The Regal was closed in 2007 but there is a campaign to get it reopened.On February the 8th 1946 the Rivers Weaver and Dane flooded.
When the water level reached the steps of the Regal Cinema the manager called off the performance. He came back later to check that all was well and he became trapped by the water. In his office he constructed a makeshift raft and he and the cinema cat waited there floating on eight foot of water which completely submerged the stalls. They were eventually rescued the next morning when police rowed in through the cinema doors after they heard shouting.
The scene I viewed that day in the 60's was nothing like the flood of 1946 but although it stopped short of the cinema it made a really big impression on a young very curious mind.
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| A view of the flooding River Weaver the town centre in the background |
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| Bus leaving the terminus on Chesterway (now a supermarket) |
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| Town Bridge |
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| The scene from Hayhurst Bridge |
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| Castle Street looking towards Town Bridge |
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| Northwich town centre |
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| Witton Street |
There has been flooding in recent years most notably 1977 and 2000 but upgrades to the weirs along the River Weaver has made managing the water levels a lot easier.
5 comments:
Very informative Andrew. Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.
Hi Andrew...the past is not always "the good old days" It should make us realize how good we have it today!!Very interesting post!!
I don't want to sound flip, but if all this snow I have here ever melts there will be a flood somewhere...lol : }}
Mother Nature can be very destructive. Climatologists believe that events like these will become more common in the future. If they are right, many people will suffer.
My thoughts go to Japan...God help them.
Hello Andrew
I am a historian writing a book about the history of northwich with Amberley Publishing. I am including the floods of 1946 in the book due to be published in the summer of 2019 and I am seeking permission to ask if I am able to include some of your photos in the book. They can be attributed to you and you will be put in the acknowledgements too. They are very good photos and would be ideal in the book.
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