The pictures below illustrate the catastrophic effect that such heavy rain has where it issues from the 2.5km culverted section into Coy Pond Gardens; all were taken between 12:35 and 13:05 pm on 13.10.06:

Above: The control structure in the new bridge is operating at full capacity

Above: The new wooden footbridge in front of the culvert is completely underwater

Above (looking south) & below (looking north): The stream has filled the floodbasin, although there is still a narrow dry border thanks to the terracing created when the floodbasin was created.

Above & below: water levels fall off dramatically during less heavy rainfall (in about 10 minutes)

The gardens further downstream fared little better:

Above & below: both bridges downstream of Bourne Pools are completely impassable

Below: At the steps leading from Coy Pond Road 

Above and below: the lower end of Coy Pond Gardens underwater

It's rainfall events such as this that combine with a rising water table to give the almost permanently boggy ground in the lower reaches of Coy Pond Gardens.

28th June 2005: it's believed that 14mm of rain fell in just one hour on a June afternoon bringing flash floods to Bournemouth & Poole, just four days after a night of tropical-style rain, thunder and lightning storm. 

The results were spectacular too see, and had wide-spread effects with local homes and commercial premises inundated by floodwater.  The Bourne Stream burst its banks and stormwater swamped the public gardens from the railway embankment at Bourne Pools right through to the Lower Gardens in Bournemouth.

Bourne Pools (below) bursting at the seams

And (below) the footpath completely impassable