SIR: I read in your paper online that Cllr Murphy recently said that "The recent flash flooding in Winchester has been an unwelcome reminder to us all about the effects of the climate emergency. Freak weather events like this will become more and more common unless we step up our efforts".

She is right and the flash flooding she mentions was not just a one-off event. I went for a short walk yesterday afternoon (Friday October 2) and observed the impact of heavy rain from Storm Alex. I encountered three places around Teg Down where the road was under water to depths of several inches or more, even covering the pavement at one point. There must have been many more examples across Winchester. Normally the drains should take care of prolonged rain but that won't happen if they are blocked by debris, either on the surface or underground, which, from my observations on drier days, seems to be the state of many drain grids.

Clearly the city council could do a lot more to keep the drains clear particularly as we are likely to experience more storms like Alex. Then it would not be necessary for some homeowners to construct a miniature bund at the top of their drive, also observed on my walk, to prevent surface water flooding their driveways or even reaching their front doors.

A recent WinACC report, yet to be reported in these pages, highlighted the lack of progress that Winchester district has made to cut its energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions since 2013. This was not just an academic exercise since events like Storm Alex are the direct result of increasing emissions from prosperous areas like Winchester in particular. We really do need to 'step up our efforts'.

Bob Whitmarsh,

Bereweeke Avenue,

Weeke,

Winchester