WHETHER or not global warming is to blame, the past few weeks have reminded us how much chaos storms can cause. North Yorkshire may have got away lightly so far, but cast your mind back to 2007 and it was a very different story.

Then Pickering was one of the worst affected towns in England, flooded for the fourth time in eight years, with damage to homes and business costing millions.

The last great flood prompted demands for action, but hope of a reprieve was dashed when proposals for new defences were scrapped.

Today, there is better news. Work has now begun on a pioneering £2m scheme designed to hold back flood water at times of peak flow. This should see Pickering drop from a 25 per cent chance of flooding in any given year to four per cent or less.

That will come as long overdue relief to the town’s residents.