Devon clears up after more heavy rain

Devon County Council is mopping up today after heavy downpours caused more problems on the county’s road network over the weekend.

Parts of East Devon took the brunt of the storms, with Sidmouth, Exmouth, Newton Poppleford, Tipton St John, Metcombe, and Woodbury worst affected.

The A376 at Exmouth currently remains closed after the road surface at Courtlands Cross started to lift on Saturday evening. A gas leak was found which has been repaired. Work is ongoing to restore the road surface, and it is hoped it will re-open under two way temporary traffic lights by 4pm today. Until it opens, a diversion route is in place via Woodbury on the B3180 to the A3052 and vice versa. Investigations are also being carried out on the drainage system beneath the road.

Around 40 tonnes of earth is being removed from Station Road, between the Bowd and Sidmouth, following a landslip. It is expected to re-open later today.

In Sidmouth, Bulverton Road is closed as debris washed onto the road, and is currently being cleared. Cadhay Lane in Ottery St Mary has also been closed while damage to a culvert is inspected. There is surface water on the B3181 Hay House Junction at Broadclyst, but it is passable with care.

Councillor Stuart Hughes, Devon County Council Cabinet Member for Highway Management and Flood Prevention, said: “The weekend’s weather has been atrocious, particularly in East Devon.

"The intense rainfall over the weekend caused some localised problems across our highway network. Despite regular cleaning of gullies, such sharp downpours have again caused high levels of runoff in some locations, which carried soil and grit into gullies causing them to block.

"Fallen leaves and vegetation have caused further problems, washing onto gully grating and blocking the flow of water into the highway drainage system, and other drains have been inundated by the volume of water.”

Over the weekend, the A3052 at Four Elms Hill was closed overnight on Saturday due to large amounts of debris being washed onto the road. Debris was removed and gully covers were replaced, and the road was reopened at 7:30am on Sunday.

Flooding was reported in the Pound Lane area of Exmouth, and in Sidmouth there was also flooding on Cotmaton Road, Woolbrook Road, Temple Street and Arcot Park.