ROAD CLOSED

This is one of two main ways out of the village - the road from Dufton to Long Marton. What a surprise - the road is closed!
 
The amount of rainfall, causing land to be saturated, has resulted in a huge landslip right across the road and into the field opposite. An idea as to the extent of the landslip can be seen in the extra picture. A phone call from marpaul alerted me to this, but then we discovered that people in the village were going down to have a look, negotiating water on the roads as they went (see next extra). So, of course, we too went to have a look!
    
However, a landslip and a bit of inconvenience is nothing compared to what many people in our county are currently facing - so many houses flooded in places like Keswick and Cockermouth, and now Carlisle. There are devastating scenes, which, after the floods of 2005 and 2009, people were hoping never to see again. Flood defences held for so long, but eventually the water was too much even for them. Our thoughts have to be with all those who are suffering at the moment.