Deserved praise for Environment Agency

IF there was a theme to this year’s Rye Annual Town Meeting on Wednesday night it was how close Rye came to flooding and how it would certainly have flooded if the improved defence wall had not been in place.

It was also time to reflect on the torrential rain we have endured and praise the unsung heroes from the local Environment Agency team, many of whom gave up their Christmas to work through appalling weather conditions.

We met Ian Nunn and his team at Scots Float earlier this year and were impressed by the level of commitment and knowledge as well as their affinity for the Rye area.

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As Ian pointed out, many of these people live in and have grown up in the Rye area - it matters to them.

We sympathise with regular Rye rail commuters who have been overcrowded by an influx of passengers from the Hastings area.

But Stuart Harland, from the Marshlink Action Group, is right to call for tolerance and understanding. Yes the rail operators need to up their game by adding more carriages, but they are hardly to blame for the landslips which have caused chaos on the Charing Cross line.