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| Version 3 | Version 4 |
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| Dam 'stable' after burst worries | Dam 'stable' after burst worries |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Engineers battling to stop a dam bursting in South Yorkshire have said the situation is "critical but stable". | Engineers battling to stop a dam bursting in South Yorkshire have said the situation is "critical but stable". |
| More than 700 people fled their homes after cracks appeared in a wall holding back Ulley reservoir, near Rotherham. | More than 700 people fled their homes after cracks appeared in a wall holding back Ulley reservoir, near Rotherham. |
| Teams had managed to stabilise the situation by pumping out as much water as was coming in via brooks and streams, Rotherham council said. | |
| The number of pumps has been doubled to try to drive down the water level, and repair work on the wall has begun. | The number of pumps has been doubled to try to drive down the water level, and repair work on the wall has begun. |
| A South Yorkshire Police spokeswoman confirmed the water level at the reservoir was falling. | A South Yorkshire Police spokeswoman confirmed the water level at the reservoir was falling. |
| It is not yet known when the evacuated residents will be able to return home. | It is not yet known when the evacuated residents will be able to return home. |
| We're hopeful it will hold and we're doing everything in our power to make sure it does Adam Wilkinson, Rotherham Council Trauma for evacuees Flood bowls over cricketers | We're hopeful it will hold and we're doing everything in our power to make sure it does Adam Wilkinson, Rotherham Council Trauma for evacuees Flood bowls over cricketers |
| More than 70 firefighters, from as far afield as Hereford and Worcester, were working at the scene on Tuesday evening, setting up 17 high volume pumps (HVPs). | |
| The HVPs will be pumping four million litres per hour out of the reservoir. | |
| A fire services spokeswoman said crews were aiming to pump out enough water to reduce the dam height by 6ft (2m), to allow strengthening work on the dam wall to begin. | |
| Motorway closed | |
| Adam Wilkinson, from the council, said: "The situation is critical and we will know more when we can pump more water out to relieve pressure on the dam. | Adam Wilkinson, from the council, said: "The situation is critical and we will know more when we can pump more water out to relieve pressure on the dam. |
| "We're hopeful it will hold and we're doing everything in our power to make sure it does. | "We're hopeful it will hold and we're doing everything in our power to make sure it does. |
| "There is more rain forecast and that, of course, presents us with further problems." | "There is more rain forecast and that, of course, presents us with further problems." |
| The M1 motorway has been closed, between junctions 32 and 36, because it would be flooded if the dam burst. | |
| Water levels at the reservoir started to fall on Tuesday afternoon | Water levels at the reservoir started to fall on Tuesday afternoon |
| South Yorkshire's Chief Constable Meredydd Hughes said: "It's not just the fact that the dam might break and the wall of water will rush to the motorway, it's also the fact that that water may take out a couple of pylons that are carrying 270,000 volts of power." | South Yorkshire's Chief Constable Meredydd Hughes said: "It's not just the fact that the dam might break and the wall of water will rush to the motorway, it's also the fact that that water may take out a couple of pylons that are carrying 270,000 volts of power." |
| Rotherham police commander Ch Supt Matt Jukes told BBC Radio Sheffield the situation was "quite grave". | Rotherham police commander Ch Supt Matt Jukes told BBC Radio Sheffield the situation was "quite grave". |
| He said: "But it is a quite stable position. It's not getting worse but it's not getting better. | He said: "But it is a quite stable position. It's not getting worse but it's not getting better. |
| "All the important emergency procedures have kicked in." | "All the important emergency procedures have kicked in." |
| Asked about the flooding scenario if the dam failed, the officer said: "The engineers are saying there is a possibility of water moving quite quickly." | Asked about the flooding scenario if the dam failed, the officer said: "The engineers are saying there is a possibility of water moving quite quickly." |
| He said the villages potentially in the path of any dam burst, including Treeton, Catcliffe and Whiston, were already experiencing river flooding. | He said the villages potentially in the path of any dam burst, including Treeton, Catcliffe and Whiston, were already experiencing river flooding. |
| A 68-year-old man and a teenage boy died in separate incidents caused by flooding in Sheffield on Monday. | A 68-year-old man and a teenage boy died in separate incidents caused by flooding in Sheffield on Monday. |