Evacuation plan for Ironbridge homes
More than 2,000 homes in the Ironbridge Gorge World Heritage Site are to receive new information packs detailing the latest evacuation plans in the event of a landslip disaster.
Since 2001, more than £33 million has been spent tackling land instability problems in the Gorge, especially in the Jackfield area.
Telford & Wrekin Council has produced a new Land Stability Pack to keep residents up to date about the effects of land instability in the area and how they can prepare for potential problems.
It is the fourth version of the pack to be produced by the council as it has been updated every three years. The pack advises residents about the warning signs of ground movement and what to do in the event of an incident.
However, civic bosses have stressed that nothing has changed in the Gorge to prompt the production of the pack, which will simply update the information households received in 2005, 2007 and 2010.
Councillor Richard Overton, cabinet member with responsibility for the Ironbridge Gorge, said: "The council has done a huge amount in the last decade to lessen the impact of land instability through engineering work in the Gorge but this problem is too big for a quick fix. That's why we and our partners have a duty to keep residents living in the Gorge regularly reminded of the potential for land instability and are aware of this issue and any possible dangers."
More than 20 people attended the Gorge Annual Parish Meeting last night at Coalport Village Hall to hear an update on stability issues.
Helen Gordon, the borough council's emergency planning officer, said a change in the pack information looked at how people should self evacuate from the Gorge if necessary.
She said in the past people had been told to go to three muster points but now they would be encouraged to make their own way from the area, or if they had no transport, meet at muster points where they would be taken to rest centres or to friends and family.
Public information sessions are also to be held to ensure the public is aware of the issue.
They will be held at the Glass Classroom at Enginuity on Wednesday, May 29, from 2pm to 8pm and on Tuesday, June 11, from 2pm to 8pm and at the volunteer centre at Blists Hill Victorian Town on Tuesday, June 4, from 9am to 3pm.
The information will also be available at www.telford.gov.uk/gorge
