Cumbria is counting the cost of a weekend of devastating weather which has severely impacted the county’s road network.
With two collapsed, bridges have been a major focus of concern and inspections have been ongoing through the day. Currently all road bridges in Kendal are open; In Cockermouth the Cocker Bridge is open but Derwent Bridge will remain closed pending further inspection; In Keswick inspections are underway, Greta Bridge remains closed; Jubilee footbridge in Appleby is open, but the main bridge across the Eden remains closed and requires underwater inspection; Eamont Bridge near Penrith is now open; and a number of bridges remain underwater and closed.
Attention is now turning to the 130 other bridges which require immediate inspection. Support is being provided by military engineers to increase the speed of this process. The council says it is also establishing a full programme of inspection for all the remaining 1,500 bridges in the county over the coming days and weeks.
Several roads have sustained extensive and significant damage including the A591 along Thirlemere; A592 along Ullswater; and the A686 at Langwathby
Military personnel are providing support to the communities in Patterdale and Glenridding which have been cut of as a result of the damage.
Numerous other roads remain closed across the county and a full status update can be found here.
A spokesperson for Cumbria County Council said: “This level of damage is unprecedented and we have had staff working flat out to assess the scale of what’s happened and begin to put plans in place. It’s still dangerous out on the road network and we’re urging people to stay away from closed bridges and damaged roads, it’s possible there could be further subsidence or collapse.”