Photo-a-Day  (Monday, 21st May, 2018)

A damn eyesore in what was a beauty spot years ago. It was shocking to see it recently after many years - but 'needs must when the devil drives' I suppose!

This dam looks great and as opened up the area to people who before wouldnt have ventured down there.

Interesting phrase that Veronica, though I'm not sure if 'needs must' in this case. Has the Dougie ever seriously flooded over?

It was lovely open land and we walked this way from Greenough St all the way to Haigh Hall years ago. It was popular for lads playing football. I remember very well how people walked along here and children playing on the hills in the background. I don't see how it has opened up for people to venture there nowadays. I found it quite 'spooky' as I recalled how it used to be years ago. I don't remember floods at all Poet - but I suppose there must have been at times.

It was a very popular beauty spot and full of wildlife and where children could play without harm, this was before the area was completely destroyed, and this dangerously attractive to children and totally unnecessary eyesore put in place. The misspent money to build this dam could have been better used for a more utilitarian purpose around town.

Exactly Poet it only ever flooded every blue moon, and only became bothersome when the natural flood plain off Scot Lane at Marsh Green was allowed to be built on.

Its a good job it was there when we had all that rain

Big Wigan Flood

https://youtu.be/41oSLkb7dmY

Mick, is this location at the bottom of Coppull Lane with the Douglas at the bottom end of it? The scheme completed in 2010/11 as part of the Wigan FAS scheme by the EA.

Fourteen million quid, and the water just pours over the top....brilliant....you be hard put to make that one up wouldn't you? Another typical Wigan cock up. On a par with Wigan's international swimming pool is that one. And they've just spent the last 12 months ripping up a perfectly good bus station, just so they can replace it with another one probably exactly identical to the previous one, and in exactly the same spot, a ten minute walk from the railway station. Stone the bleedin' crows.

It stopped most of it Ozy

On the contrary Mick, it didn't stop any of It, it merely held some of it back temporarily, then once the water rose beyond the critical level, and I've witnessed it almost at this point on several occasions, the entire thing proved to be useless, as your excellent video amply illustrates. I won't go into the damage that's been caused further upstream as a result of this dam being constructed, but one area in particular that used to be extremely pleasant, now resembles the Okeefenokee swamp. And the bottom line is this, Asda still gets flooded. Fourteen million quid wasted in my view.

Regards. Ozy

Because I hadn't been near the place for over 50 years it felt like an assault on my eyes to see the 'transformation'. The childhood haunt in school holidays and later as a teenager roaming the paths to the woods seemed to have disappeared and everywhere 'closed in'. I I found myself transfixed, literally looking for a bridge that just wasn't there anymore! I sensed then - there's no going back - only in my dreams! Daft really!

Good subject Mick. You can never satisfy everyone. Flood control is probably one of the most difficult problems to tackle. Like the Thames Barrier, it has probably only a few times so look at all that cost being wasted, not so , it only takes one severe rainfall and we could be inundated with water.
It is very difficult to gauge "Mother Nature" she has many disasters hidden up her sleeves. Just look at the power of nature and then look at our puny attempts to control it.