Kent flood alert issued for Dartford, Medway, Sheppey, Kemsley, Faversham, Seasalter and Margate
Published: 13:19, 24 February 2023
Updated: 17:28, 24 February 2023
Flood alerts have been issued around parts of Kent for a second day due to expected high tides this afternoon.
The warnings have been flagged for areas from Dartford to Allhallows, Whitstable to Margate, Sheppey and Kemsley to Seasalter and the Medway estuary.
The next two high tides are expected at 3.30pm and tomorrow morning at 3.45am.
Areas of concern include Faversham and Conyer and low-lying land nearest the sea.
Officials at Canterbury City Council have confirmed its plans to close some, but not all, sea barriers along the Herne Bay and Whitstable coast.
The update comes as teams monitor the situation in the area as the council braces itself for "the biggest tide we have had in a while".
The local authority released the following statement: "We will be closing additional floodgates in Herne Bay and Whitstable. Some floodgates will remain open but this doesn’t mean we have forgotten to close them.
"The forecast will be monitored very closely and, if necessary, we will close further floodgates along our seafront.
"Our staff will be out monitoring the situation and operating the sluice gates on the coastal brooks to stop the sea flooding inland."
For further details click here.
A statement on the government website says: "Please be careful along beaches, promenades, coastal footpaths and roads as large waves and sea spray could be dangerous.
"Once the high tide this afternoon has passed, conditions are expected to improve from 5pm onwards.
"We are closely monitoring the situation and our incident response staff are operating our defences and structures at Queenborough Barrier and Front Brents."
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Megan Carr