7:00 - 05-June-2008
The move by Yorkshire Water comes nearly a year after the failure of its pumping station at Bransholme during last June's floods.
The station was overwhelmed by flood water early on June 26, leaving large areas of Kingswood, Bransholme and Sutton Park under water for several days.
The lack of any contingency plans for the station in the event of flooding was highlighted in a number of subsequent reports on the events of last summer.
Yorkshire Water said the new pumps would provide “100 per cent back-up” for the station.
However, company officials stressed the new £1.5m investment would not prevent flooding from happening again if rainfall occurred on a similar scale.
The standby pumps will replace temporary emergency pumps that have remained on site since last summer's storms.
They are in addition to £500,000 of improvements the company has already made to the existing pumps in the station.
Graham Dixon, director of Yorkshire Water's environmental business unit, said: “We have been working hard since the floods to improve the flood protection at the station and this additional investment should provide added reassurance to residents.
“We are already working with the Kingswood Development Company, the Environment Agency and Hull City Council to develop a longer term strategy for the area.
“With so much planned development, it is important to ensure that we continue to provide the right level of pumping and storage capacity both now and in the future.”
Neil Sykes, deputy chairman of the northern region of the Consumer Council for Water, said: “Increased investment by Yorkshire Water to strengthen the resilience of the Bransholme pumping station will be welcomed by consumers.”
"While recognising that this will not prevent flooding in adverse weather, it will go some way towards allaying the anxieties of local residents and is a positive contribution to a longer term strategy.
“As the consumer watchdog, we continue to support the work of all stakeholders involved in developing a way forward for the people of Hull."
Yorkshire Water has said it will do all it can to minimise disruption to residents living nearby during construction work.