November 29, 2019 5.02 pm This story is over 60 months old

Over 250 acres of James Dyson farm flooded as water nears village

The farm is owned by billionaire inventor James Dyson

Over 250 acres of farmland owned by the billionaire inventor James Dyson is flooded after a river breach but officials now fear that a nearby village could soon be hit.

Beeswax Dyson, which owns the land near Coningsby, first noticed a 35-feet breach on Friday morning but the situation has escalated quickly.

The Environment Agency, the internal drainage board, Lincolnshire Police, North Kesteven District Council, Lincolnshire County Council are all on the scene working to stop the breach in the Timberland Delph.

Currently, they are trying to pump water out of the fenland drain and get as much as possible into the nearby River Witham before they can fix the breach with sandbags already delivered to the area.

It’s the second time in as many months that farmland owned by Beeswax Dyson has been flooded after people in Ruskington made desperate attempts to save their valuables and bungalows.

Ben Wills, head of property at Beeswax Dyson, told Lincolnshire Reporter: “The teams here have been pumping like mad all-day and we are now working on a more long-term plan to fix the breach.

“We already have some sandbags ready to go but we are just waiting on some machinery which can lift them into place.

“There have been lots of people out here today trying to help and we’ve taken some positive steps, which is great.”

Water is flowing through the breach. Photo: Beeswax Dyson

Homes are surrounded by floodwater. Photo: Beeswax Dyson

Six low lying properties near Glebe Farm are the most at risk, with some pictures showing homes completely surrounded by water.

An Environment Agency spokesperson said: “We have teams on the ground responding to a breach on the Timberland Delph.

“We have issued a flood warning for the area and we’re assessing what action we can take to reduce the impacts.

“Lincolnshire has had double its usual rainfall for the autumn season, meaning many rivers are reaching their capacity.”