Fordingbridge pub The George at risk of flooding

Caroline Roylance, who owns The George in Fordingbridge, said the River Avon would only need to rise another eight inches before it flooded parts of the premises.

With a flood alert in place for the river, and more rain forecast this week, Caroline is expecting the worst.

She said: “I can tell how close we are to flooding by measuring the river against the bridge by the pub.

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“The whole recreation ground opposite us will fill with water before we flood, and that is starting to fill, and it’s creeping up on the bridge.

The conservatory area at The George (Image: NQ)

“So, we are close, and there is a lot of rain in the forecast, but we’re not there yet.”

The George had been hit by flooding back in January 2014 after the river came level with the premises and swamped the conservatory area, which is lowest to banks.

Because of that incident, Caroline said she and her team will ‘know what to look for’ this time around and have their own flood defences prepared for the conservatory.

• Read more: The George Pub in Fordingbridge at risk of flooding

Caroline said: “Sandbags are really expensive, so we’ve just ordered a ton of sand and bags to fill them ourselves, and if the water does creep up, then we will start filling them and put them in place.

“But at the moment, we just have to watch it, as there’s not much we can do yet.”

Caroline is confident that should the river rise further, and their defence mechanisms work for the conservatory, the pub would face little impact, and could remain open.

Her concern, however, is the risk of ground flooding, which could impact the rest of the premises.

There is currently a warning in place for groundwater flooding in the area.

She said: “If it does come up through the floor of the restaurant, there’s nothing we can do about that. That’s ground water and you can’t stop it.

“We’d just have to rip up the carpet and wait for it to dry out.

“It involves a lot of work, drama and time.”