The Environment Agency has been working to restore the flood bank along the River Pont at Eland Lane since the floods of 2008.
This week work has started on the last section of the embankment, which has been eroded by walkers or moved naturally and has dropped by as much as 300mm.
The final section is expected to take two weeks to complete and will cost £10,000.
Once the banks have been repaired they will protect residents from a flood that has a two percent chance of happening in any year. A gate will be installed to prevent access to the flood bank, which is built on private land.
Further downstream, the agency has been re-building a flood defence wall and raising the lower sections at a cost of £5,000.
Project Manager Simon Eadington said: “Once this next part of the work is completed the risk of flooding in the town will be greatly reduced and hopefully ease residents’ concerns.
“Over the coming months we will continue to carry out our routine maintenance on the watercourse to make sure the river flows as well as possible.
“This is likely to include some tree maintenance where we will remove lower branches to reduce the risk of blockages.
“We’ll carry out the work each year so the channel is as clear as possible.”
Source: Morpeth Herald - Full Story
