Engineers are keeping a watching brief on 100 flood-hit bridges as the mammoth operation to repair the devastation of Storm Desmond continues.

Work has been completed at Eden Bridge in Carlisle and Kendal’s Victoria Bridge to ensure they are protected for the winter.

They are the latest in 185 bridges across the county being repaired after being battered by the force of unprecedented flooding in December.

In Carlisle, work at Eden Bridge has included the placement of rock armour around the structures piers to protect any erosion of the crossing foundations.

Work has been taking place at night on the bridge, the busiest route in and out of the city centre.

Its closure in the aftermath of the flooding – while the stability of the structure was assessed – created a severe traffic headache throughout the city.

Cumbria County Council says its highways team is pushing ahead as quickly as it can with repairing floods damage.

Work includes fixing the scars left by the extreme elements, as well as – like in Carlisle – putting extra protection in place to reduce the risk of damage if water levels are high again this winter.


Keith Little Keith Little, the county councillor responsible for highways, said: “It’s a big task and council staff and our contractors have been working very hard to get the work done quickly and in advance of the winter weather.

Permanent repairs to other bridges are being planned for next year.

A council spokesman said the authority was monitoring about 100 bridges over the winter where permanent repairs have not been possible or are only partially complete.

Closures will be put in place if problems develop.

Mr Little added: “Victoria and Eden bridges are just two of the many bridges that we are working on now to get them ready for winter.

“The scale of the impact on the county’s road and bridge infrastructure was huge and we’re still discovering new damage in new locations as we progress with recovery work.

“We’re absolutely determined to get the network back to full strength as soon as possible.”

The staggering force of the water in December last year lead to unprecedented damage to Cumbria’s bridges, most notably at Pooley Bridge, which was destroyed.

A temporary replacement crossing has since been put in place.