31 January 2023 marks 70 years since a major flood devastated communities on Lincolnshire’s east coast. A special memorial service was held at St Peter and St Paul in Ingoldmells.
43 people lost their lives, with the most seriously affected areas being Mablethorpe, Sutton on Sea and Skegness, and the villages in between.
Members of the local community – including some living in the area at the time – and representatives from the council, including Cllrs Martin Hill, Patricia Bradwell and Colin Davie, came together at the church in Ingoldmells to mark the occasion.
Lord-Lieutenant of Lincolnshire, Toby Dennis, and the High Sheriff of Lincolnshire, Tim Strawson, were also in attendance.
Reports from 1953 say that a combination of high spring tides and severe winds caused a storm surge. Soon after dusk, the sea overflowed into the towns and villages along the coast, breaching the defences, and leaving them underwater.
With the addition of the morning’s high tide and the continued storm, the flooding then only got worse.
Following the flood, sand and mud needed to be pumped back to sea so that people could return to their homes, and the military were brought in to shore up defences before the next high tide in February.
An exhibition of photographs, newspaper articles and even local children’s schoolwork from the time also opened today at the North Sea Observatory in Chapel St Leonards. The exhibition is free to visit and will be on display until the end of February 2023.
Cllr Colin Davie, executive councillor for environment, and local councillor for Ingoldmells Rural on Lincolnshire County Council, said:
“Lincolnshire has battled with floods throughout history; a challenge that continues today as we take steps to better protect our communities along the coast.
“This anniversary is a chance to not only look back and remember those who lost their lives – and the great challenges our coastal communities overcame at that time – but to take stock of how well prepared we are today against the threat of coastal flooding.”