THESE dramatic pictures of York's flooded Foss barrier control room have been released for the first time by the Environment Agency as it revealed further details of its plans for a £17 million upgrade.

The control room, which was meant to be watertight, was inundated on Boxing Day as record flows of water swept down the River Foss.

The leak forced staff to shut down pumps and open the barrier, and the images show floodwaters and debris swirling around the building.

The pictures were released at a public consultation event held by the agency at a hotel in Piccadilly last Friday and Saturday, along with plans showing how the barrier's pumping station will look after its capacity has been almost doubled.

Powerful new pumps will be capable of pumping about 50 tonnes of water per second, compared with the current 30 tonnes per second. About 40 tonnes per second came down the River Foss at its peak on Boxing Day, and hundreds of properties alongside the river and its tributaries suffered devastating flooding.

The pumps will require much more electricity and will need to continue operating even if there is a mains power failure.

The agency is therefore planning to build a new building in St George's Field Car Park, alongside the pumping station, in which three generators will be housed.

An extra storey will also be built on top of the pumping station, so that all equipment can be located on the first floor above flood levels.

An agency spokeswoman said the consultation exhibition, which also outlined how the organisation may spend a further £45 million tackling flooding in ten different communities across the York area, was attended by about 170 people, including many local residents who had been flooded.

She said most had found it informative and had welcomed the opportunity to comment on future proposals.

"Amongst the visitors were York Central MP Rachael Maskell, City of York Councillor Andrew Waller and independent chair of the City of York flood review panel Angharad Davies," she said.

"We plan to share all the information presented at the exhibition. A further exhibition will be held in October, where the agency will provide an update of progress on the Foss Barrier upgrade plans and the latest on its proposals for reducing the risk of flooding throughout the remainder of York."