Flood defences will be built in the lower part of Laxey village as part of the next phase of an ongoing flood protection project.

The Department of Infrastructure has been granted permission to install part stone, part glass flood defences in the lower part of the village.

The defences will protect the Shore Hotel and surrounding area, which was damaged during the ‘flood of a century’ in 2019.

Chair of Garff Commissioners Marinda Faragher explained the proposed design, saying: ‘The design that’s been approved is basically a 50/50 design so you’ll have a section of two foot high wall and then a two foot high piece of glass. Hopefully the structure of the wall will blend in with the rest of the surroundings, the lovely Manx stone walling.

‘This is a part of the conservation here, so we wanted it all to fit in. Originally it could have been a big glass wall, I’m not sure what it would have looked like and people weren’t convinced it was the right thing for here so hopefully we’ve got a comprimise.

‘They’ve got to come back to the planners with the right type of stone, that’s one of the things they’ve got to think about, and the glass has got to be “bird proof”, so the birds don’t fly into it. It’s got to be self cleaning I think. It’ll be interesting to see what material that is.’

She added: ‘It’ll give the protection which is what the river works are all about, they’re spending a fortune in Laxey at the moment and they can only do it between July and September when the fish aren’t spawning.

‘They’ve started work up at the top and they’ve got as far as Victoria Terrace, so they’ve got to come all the way down yet as far as the tennis courts.

‘The department has approval and budgets for that that area too so I’m not quite sure where the priority is for it all.’

Mrs Faragher recalled the 2019 flooding, amongst other floods in Laxey, as being the worst.

The flood caused many to vacate their properties, particularly along Glen Road, forced to find other means of accommodation due to damage in their homes.

‘I can’t imagine the worry that people will have had,’ Mrs Faragher said.

‘I think 62 in Laxey all together but over 50 in Glen Road were flooded in that flood overnight on October 1, 2019.

‘There have been other floods but that was the major recent one which caused the government to commit a lot of money and funding.

‘They realised it’s absolutely essential, Laxey is top of the list at the moment to get flooding sorted out.

‘Not just from the river either, they’re also thinking about rising sea levels and the rainfall. We’ve got a lot of water coming off the hills and down.

‘It’s been really distressing.

‘I think most people are back in their houses now but if you walk up Glen Road you’ll see work getting done on properties that are still being repaired. It’s been really stressful for people but hopefully the flood walls will, when completed, give a lot of peace of mind for people.’