Test for flood defences planned

The new Kirkwall Harbour flood prevention scheme are set to be tested.

Orkney Islands Council is advising that flood gates will be deployed for a short time on Tuesday, November 20.

This will have a temporary impact on the Waterfront West-Shapinsay Slip carpark and the wider Kirkwall harbour area.

The scheme, built with the majority of costs funded by the Scottish Government, is designed to protect low lying parts of Kirkwall against flooding from the sea.

When forecasts predict there a flooding risk, flood gates will be fitted across gaps in the stone wall along the harbour front — creating a 1.1-metre-high uninterrupted barrier between Ayre Mills and St Catherine’s Place roundabout.

“When the flood gates are in place there will be an impact on access to Kirkwall Pier and the wider harbour area,” said John Wrigley, OIC’s roads and environmental services manager.

“It will also affect drivers, who will be unable to move vehicles in and out of the Waterfront West-Shapinsay Slip car park.

“Together with SEPA (the Scottish Environment Protection Agency) we’ll endeavour to give people plenty of advance warning that the flood gates are likely to be deployed.”

He added: “We will be putting the gates in place on Tuesday during an exercise to test the flood defence systems we’ve developed. This will be for a short period only and we apologise in advance for any inconvenience this causes.”

People who live and work in Kirkwall are encouraged to sign up for SEPA’s new coastal flood warning service for Kirkwall. This aims to provide advanced warning when coastal flooding is likely to occur.

In addition, the council will provide updates on the OIC_Roads Twitter feed when the flood defences are — or are likely to be — deployed. The OIC_Roads Twitter feed also provides updates when the Churchill Barriers are closed, or when closure of the barriers is under consideration.