The North Sea Flood of January/February 1953 was the worst in England or Scotland in the entire 20th century. Due to freak weather conditions in the North Sea, plus inadequate and poorly maintained flood defences, large areas of the East Coast were engulfed by sea water, with Canvey Island, Felixstowe and Jaywick especially hard-hit, along with the north east coast of Scotland. In all, 990 miles of coastline was affected, sea defences were breached in around 1200 separate places, and 160,000 acres were flooded. In the UK, 307 people lost their lives, and over 30,000 had to move out of their homes, many taking only the clothes they were wearing.
There was also extensive damage and loss of life on the continent, with Belgium and Holland especially hardhit, while in…
