Caravan Park fined thousands over flooding
by Joe Jeffrey
Caravan owner fined for ‘flooding neighbour’s property and failing to act on botched handy work
A caravan park owner in the Lake District has been fined thousands of pounds after altering a watercourse and almost flooding his neighbour’s home.
Graham Holden, owner of Greenhowe Caravan Park in Great Langdale, is said to have replaced existing pipework in order to divert a beck without seeking permission from Cumbria County Council, whilst allegedly ignoring orders to return it to its original state.
As a result of Holden’s actions, the pipe work burst during heavy rainfall in November last year and a mass of soil and debris infiltrated the garden of a neighbouring cottage whilst blocking the beck in the process over a period of seven days.
Upon investigation in January of this year, county council officials subsequently found a ‘vast amount’ of water by the entrance to Greenhowe Caravan Park and, despite being ordered to rectify the flood issues by March by removing alterations, Holden failed to act, instead covering up his handy work with stones and gravel.
During mitigation, Holden claimed bad weather had caused land surrounding the beck to slip into the park’s neighbouring property and stated he wanted to ‘retrieve the situation’ by replacing the pipework himself.
Holden was fined £2,000 and ordered to pay £6,377 costs and a victim surcharge of £120 as a result of the botched handy work and failing to act in order to rectify his actions.
