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According to the Environment Agency鈥檚 own maps of the region, areas of South Manchester are either at 鈥榤oderate鈥� or 鈥榮ignificant鈥� risk of flooding should the River Mersey burst its banks.

So should people in these areas be worried? And how has Manchester escaped the flooding?

Flood defences

Richard Macilwaine is the Environment Agency鈥檚 Flood Risk Manager for the south area which includes Manchester and Cheshire. He believes it鈥檚 largely down to investment in flood defences, good planning and a lot of work behind the scenes.

It works like this: if river levels rise rapidly, sluice gates can be opened at Sale Ees and at Fielden Park in Didsbury. "Basically, what that is doing is taking the peak of the flood wave and directing it safely into Sale Water Park and onto Withington Golf Course."

Mr Macilwaine also praised the vigilance of Agency staff who are constantly monitoring our waterways and removing blockages. 鈥淓ven domestic waste can cause problems. A tarpaulin blocking a storm drain could result in rising water levels. It鈥檚 a constant battle to keep on top of it.鈥�

The big ditch

One theory is that the Manchester Ship Canal acts as a 鈥榖ig ditch鈥� draining the floodwater across the region. But is that true?

APEM Ltd is an environmental consultancy firm based at Manchester Science Park with 20 years' experience surveying the region鈥檚 rivers and waterways.

He knows the Ship Canal well and believes it does have a part to play in protecting the region. "It鈥檚 a very useful piece of flood defence in this area," he said.

鈥淲hen you look at it, we鈥檝e got this huge water course running through the region and while the levels of the Mersey are higher as they are at the moment, the Ship Canal definitely helps to control this.鈥�

Good luck

So what about the weather? Manchester has seen a lot of rain, but no flooding. Alan Goodman is North West Regional Advisor for the Met Office. He believes it鈥檚 down to the Pennines - and a good portion of luck.

"But we鈥檙e also protected by the hills. We know that when copious amounts of warm, moist air is forced upwards, it results in rainfall. Recently, the wind has been coming from the East/ North East, so when it鈥檚 reached the Pennines, it鈥檚 fallen on the Yorkshire side," he said.

"Having said that, in terms of last Friday, the geography wouldn鈥檛 have counted one iota if we鈥檇 had the sort of rain system that hit Oxfordshire and that area. So we鈥檝e been lucky in that respect."