PEOPLE living in properties prone to flooding are being offered expert advice by the Environment Agency on how to protect themselves against the worst consequences.

With summer flooding now a regular event, the agency has drawn up no fewer than three separate guide on how to prepare when floods are forecast, what to do during a flood and what to do afterwards.

Their launch follows the visit of the Environment Agency’s Flood Awareness Roadshow to Thirsk, North Yorks, last month, which demonstrated the steps that people can take to prepare for flooding and provided one-to-one advice to all visitors.

Several rivers which flow out of the Yorkshire Dales represent severe flood risks after heavy rains including the Aire, the Wharfe, the Ure and their many tributaries. Towns at risk include Skipton and Ripon and dozens of villages further down stream.

More than 2.2 million homes are situated in areas at risk of coastal or river flooding in England and Wales and even those properties not at risk of river or coastal flooding can still be affected by surface water flooding in cases where drainage systems are unable to deal with intense rainfall. Last summer alone around 50,000 homes were flooded, many of which had never flooded before.

The guides form an essential part of the Environment Agency’s ongoing Flood Awareness Campaign which urges every household and business to check their flood risk by calling Floodline on 0845 9881188 or using the online postcode checker at www.environment-agency.gov.uk/flood