RAF Chinook drops sandbags on weakened Derbyshire reservoir

Thousands of residents from Whaley Bridge in Derbyshire spent the night away from their homes during what police described as ’an unprecedented, fast-moving, emergency situation’ caused by five days of downpours. Emergency service workers were scrambling to save the 19th century dam which could be set to burst any minute, with teams laying sandbags to prevent the water breaking through and wiping out the picturesque town. Officers spent hours going door-to-door around homes in the Derbyshire village, as re