AN urgent cash plea has been made in a bid to secure the final piece of a village flood defence jigsaw.

More than 70 Elvington residents packed a public meeting last night to hear £160,000 was needed to complete a new barrier project.

Parish council chairman Ian Bailey said: "We have got to raise big money and we have to raise it quickly.

"I urge all of you to help in any way you can - even if it's just with contacts. The final part of the scheme will not happen unless we get help from the village."

Coun Bailey said he hoped the cash from the local community towards the pumping station would be available by June or July.

He suggested Yorkshire Forward, City of York Council and Yorkshire Water as possible donors, and said: "Let's see how much we can get over the next couple of months. We could get one or two nice surprises."

No firm cash offers were made during the meeting at the village primary school, but parish councillors were hoping residents and businesses would dig deep in future weeks.

As previously reported in the Evening Press, the Yorkshire Regional Flood Defence Committee has provisionally agreed to provide up to £221,000 to fund an embankment to help ease future flooding in Elvington.

This work is expected to start this summer.

But £160,000 is needed for the final phase, a pumping station to discharge water from the beck into the River Derwent.

During flooding in November 2000, Elvington was effectively cut off. About 140 homes had no proper access for emergency services for nearly three weeks, and raw sewage was deposited in the centre of the village. But the meeting heard a fully-funded scheme would ensure there was no repeat of 2000.

Local MP John Grogan said the chances of such a scheme emerging had looked unlikely during that crisis, but said: "Momentum grew and Elvington was not going to take no for an answer."

He said the village's plight had "touched the hearts" of even the most hard-hearted bureaucrats. He paid tribute to the parish council, City of York Council and the local drainage board for their support.

Updated: 10:42 Wednesday, April 06, 2005