About those rising tides … this from today’s Guardian ….

The EA’s own guidance also says the barrier should not be closed more than 50 times a year. If 50 becomes the norm, it says, the barrier could fail.

The barrier was closed

• 4 times in the 80s
• 35 times in the 90s
• 75 times in the 00s
• 74 times in the 10s (50 times in 2013/14 alone)

So far this decade we seem to be around 20 - but we haven’t had any ‘peak years’ yet. (Wikipedia)