THE Environment Agency’s first community-based groundwater flood warning service in Dorset and Wiltshire will

officially launch next Monday.

The new service for residents will be added to the Environment Agency’s National Flood Warning Service online, which previously only alerted members of the public to more general groundwater flood alerts.

An awareness-raising campaign will launch the new service via social media. Community engagement workshops will also take place later in the year.

The aim is to target residents in vulnerable communities to check if they are at risk of groundwater flooding, and sign up for free telephone or text message alerts.

Groundwater flooding is commonly associated with areas of chalk geology. It occurs when the water table rises to the surface following a wetter than average winter.

Nicol Sellick, from the Environment Agency’s local flood resilience team, said: “Rising groundwater can be very difficult to protect against. It is less visible than flooding from rivers, and often seems to appear out of nowhere. A warning can be the first indication people get that flooding is imminent.

“This type of flooding can be a huge problem for householders. It can lead to overflowing septic tanks and flooded basements. Groundwater can be around for weeks or even months, as a result.

“Signing up for groundwater flood warnings will give residents the chance to take action and put preventative measures in place before flooding affects their home, like turning on pumps.”

Wiltshire and Dorset Councils, the lead local flood authorities for groundwater flooding, supported the development of the service, which has been funded by the Wessex Regional Flood and Coastal Committee (RFCC).

Residents can find out if the groundwater flood warning service is available in their area by visiting gov.uk/check-flood-risk

Register to receive groundwater flood alerts and flood warnings by calling Floodline on 0345 988 118 (free 24 hour service) or online at gov.uk/sign-up-for-flood-warnings.

Residents that are already signed up to the Flood Warning Service, will still need to ‘opt in’ for groundwater flood warnings too.

To find out more information about groundwater flooding, visit gov.uk/government/publications/flooding-from-groundwater for practical advice and guidance on how to reduce the impact of flooding from groundwater.