Storm Bert has brought damage and destruction to communities across Wales. I know that in Monmouthshire you’ve seen roads and schools closed, while buses and trains have been disrupted. But perhaps the most shocking incident in the south east was the news that residents had to be evacuated from their homes after a landslide in Cwmtillery, Blaenau Gwent.

My thoughts this week are with all those affected, and my thanks goes to everyone involved in the emergency clean-up effort.

Sadly these scenes are too commonplace, and the warnings from four years ago have not been heeded.

When record rainfall fell in 2020, Plaid Cymru called for an independent public inquiry, as well as an increase in flood prevention funding, and for a single body to be responsible for flooding.

Regrettably, this weekend’s events demonstrate that lessons have not been learned, and that has left communities at the mercy of the weather, without adequate mitigating measures in place.

While the immediate focus is rightly on keeping people safe, it is critically important that representatives of the communities affected scrutinise the Welsh Government and its approach to flooding.

This is why I have tabled an urgent question to the Welsh Government, so that we can get some answers from those responsible for flood defences.

The waters will recede, but they will leave in their wake more than dirty stains on people’s walls – the psychological toll will also be significant. Over the coming weeks, I’ll be pushing to make sure that residents who’ve been affected by this crisis will get the mental health support they need, as well as urgent answers to all the questions they’re rightly asking.