Adverse Weather in Penistone

2007 Flooding
Many places in Yorkshire had suffered badly in the June 2007 floods, especially Sheffield, but we were let off lightly in comparison. Even so, there were areas of flooding in Penistone, such as Green Road, fields near Bridge End and Waterhall Park.

These dramatic pictures were kindly donated by Jeremy Cutts and show how the park had turned from a grassy recreational area into a lake.

Green Road Flooding
The problem is probably cured now but there has been severe flooding at times on Green Road near to the bottom of Ward Street. There are no actual photographs available of that on this website but the picture here gives the approximate location.

Cubley Brook flows from Cubley Bottom and follows the line of Green Road past Rose Hill and near to the red-brick houses which are accessed from a raised walkway. At one time you could see a water mark on the wall about two-thirds the way up the ramp of the raised walkway. Around that point, the brook passes under Green Road to the former steelworks site and towards Sheffield Road.

The problem was a build-up of debris which would block the way under Green Road but it seems to have been fixed somehow, perhaps by regular inspection. At one time, the water would flow into the 'Nibble' which was a man-made dam behind the high stone wall behind a row of houses on Sheffield Road. The dam was used for the steelworks. The Nibble is long gone now and was filled in. In fact, that area is now a large housing development.

The flow of Cubley Brook continues under Sheffield Road near to the former Britannia pub (now a children's nursery) to join the River Don just down-river from the Cricket Club. It is odd that Sheffield Road itself seldom floods by any more than a large puddle.

Storms
These had been increasing in intensity in the modern age. A series of storms in the 2021 early winter caused flooding and damage such as fences being blown down. Scout Bridge became almost impassible in early February 2022. One car came home with twigs in the radiator grille after wading through it in first gear. A bad storm with very high and gusting wind speeds and torrential rain was Storm Dudley (best pronounced in a Midland accent -"Dudlye") on 15th-16th February 2022.

This was quickly followed by Storm Eunice on 18th-19th February 2022 but that one was weaker in our area than Dudley. It affected the south of the country very badly, or at least it featured more on the national (mostly London) news. Scotland had very heavy snow but the south had high winds and heavy rain, with gusts up to a record-breaking 122 mph on the Isle of Wight.

Incidentally, we should remember a survival tactic if driving a vehicle through a flooded road. If the (internal combustion) engine stalls because of the water reaching the engine, you can still pull the vehicle forward some distance by using the starter motor, if the clutch is left engaged (left foot up).

Deep Snow

A correspondent asked me about a deep snow view in Penistone. Given our altitude, we have had plenty of bad winters in Penistone but the worst snow in the last century was in 1947. The only picture that I could muster was this one, taken near Cubley. I think it was in the 1960s. Try digging that lot out! (From the Janet A. collection). See some more snowy pictures.