Conversation:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-south-yorkshire-21441070

Looks like I'm not going anywhere by train anytime soon...

I'm surprised they didn't see that one coming! Does nobody think about spoil heaps moving?

That Aberfan disaster was caused by a spoil heap crushing a school, was't it?

Bad memories Icy North, but hopefully they have avoided loss of life unless it gets worse. I was watching a TV programme the other night about the 2012 floods, and there was far more footage than I had seen on the News bulletins.

We were home just in time to miss the Dorset tragedies, but it is clear with all the wet weather continuing that there is going to be more of the same in the future.

GB, if it has stopped you travelling but at least you are safe.



Websailor

Aye, thank Bob you weren't riding in a train there

"Does nobody think about spoil heaps moving? "

The answer is they do but it's not always easy to predict. Bit of context:

http://www.bgs.ac.uk/science/landUseAndDevelopment/landslides/November2012.html

and this blog has two posts on the slip http://blogs.agu.org/landslideblog/ (there's an earlier post linked to in that blog that reviews Aberfan)

It's in my wishlist this year to attend a hootoo meet, but there's no concrete plans yet.

Aberfan

The Franch meet-up in Reims, the capital of , looks very promising, though