Agenda and minutes

The Chair welcomed the attendees to the meeting and introductions were made around the table for the benefit of new members.

To receive disclosures of personal interest from Members in accordance with the Code of Conduct

Note:

1.    Members are requested to identify the item number and subject matter that their interest relates to and signify the nature of the personal interest: and

2.   Where Members withdraw from a meeting as a consequence of the disclosure of a prejudicial interest they must notify the Chairman when they leave.

In accordance with the Council’s Code of Conduct, there were no declarations made pertaining to the agenda.

To receive the minutes of the meeting held on 20^th February 2020.

It was RESOLVED to approve the minutes of the meeting held on 20^th February 2020 as an accurate reflection.

To receive verbal updates from the relevant officers in respect of the Council’s recovery response to date and future service planning.

The following updates were provided by Council Officers and Key Partners in respect of the major weather incident ‘Storm Dennis’:

Highways and Infrastructure

·         To date, 199 river bridges had been inspected;

·         9 bridges were closed, 3 of which were considered to be significant (Berw Road, Castle Inn and Ynysangharad);

·         The closure of the Berw Road bridge was the cause of traffic through Pontypridd;

·         7 river walls had collapsed but as the engineers were unable to inspect in terms of scour, there was likely to be significant damage that was yet to be identified;

·         74 culverts had been re-inspected since the flood with just over 20 left;

·         Pentre culverts were clear but Mountain Ash remained blocked with debris;

·         43 category C and D tips had been inspected with no significant ongoing issues apart from Llanwonno tip, which was subject to 24 hour monitoring with drainage works commencing;

·         There was an embargo on all utility works; and

·         568 residential properties had been affected by the flooding.

Frontline Services

·         Cardiff Council, the Vale of Glamorgan and Flintshire Council had supported the Council with the ongoing clean-up by providing gully suckers and road sweepers;

·         A huge clean-up had been undertaken of Oxford Street, Mountain Ash;

·         The clean-up was ongoing in areas as a number of residents must wait for their insurers’ inspection;

·         The Treforest Industrial Estate bridge had been inspected and the update was pending;

·         The issue with sewerage in Trehafod was being dealt with;

·         GE had offered volunteers to help with the clean-up in Trehafod and Taffs Well and would be matched with Council officers;

·         The river levels were lowering; and

·         Praise was provided to the teams for their outstanding and ongoing work; and the residents for their resilience.

Businesses

·         347 businesses had flood damage;

·         92 businesses had applied for the hardship fund, with 68 currently being processed by finance;

·         A well-received drop in session took place in Nantgarw, whereby over 40 businesses attended;

·         39 of the businesses located in Treforest Industrial Estate had applied for the hardship fund;

·         5 of the businesses located in Mountain Ash had applied for the hardship fund;

·         27 of the businesses located in Pontypridd Town Centre had applied for the hardship fund;

·         16 out of the 22 businesses located in Cwmbach had applied for the hardship fund;

·         The Council were liaising with Business Wales to provide legal advice as loss of earnings and business continuity was a key concern;

·         A walkabout had taken place with the Minister in Cwmbach to observe the damage caused;

·         There had been limited impact on Hirawun Industrial Estate; and

·         Sandbags had been of great benefit for the houses in Llewellyn Street, Pentre.

Pontypridd BID

·         £38,000 of the budget had been allocated to assisting the town centre with flood relief:

-       £1,500 for small uninsured businesses;

-       £750 for small insured businesses; and

-       £400 to National businesses.

·         Free advertising was provided to promote the town;

·         The closure of the Lido, Ynysangharad Park and the footbridge will have a  ...  view the full minutes text for item 14.