Here's another link... http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=120105185386
Dear Mr Duddridge
Re your comments in this article -
I live in Lee-Over-Sands on Colne Point, St Osyth, Essex which is 15 miles away from the explosions from Shoeburyness - Despite what you think, the explosions are still going on, we've had peace and quiet over the winter and not many really big explosion vibrations until the last two weeks.
Every now and again they seem to test really massive explosions - which make all the houses in my road shake like there's an earthquake going on - yet Qinetic insist ground vibrations aren't possible - and its only air pressure, which is below their prescribed limits. The smaller ones aren't too bad and are tolerable - but when it makes your entire home shake... thats a different matter entirely. I work from my home as a software designer - when I moved to this area I had no idea how incredible the tremors were until several weeks after moving in - whilst the peace and quiet here is fabulous - and why I moved here, each time the tests go on - its not just humans that feel the effects here - even the birds in the SSSI sanctuary panic and fly making loud noises of fright.
Basically the issue for us here is not sound from the explosions - its vibration. Our homes are behind and surrounded partly by the sea wall defences, which seems to amplify the shockwave, and perhaps the geological structure of the land here seems to be particularly susceptible to this.
After many, many complaints to them most residents here start to give up with the process and don't see any point, because it just keeps going on and on! When you ring the company's complaints line you get the same old story about decibel levels. Of course an explosion sounds quieter in the air at a short distance - what they don't measure or consider is that sound travels underground in low frequency waves for a great distance - so this form of monitoring is inaccurate. Perhaps they are burying munitions and detonating them to reduce short distance noise - only causing us worse problems miles away!
Basically these sort of tests should be done in a very remote location - or limits should be put on magnitude of explosions. I fail to see how any IED in Afganistan can match these huge explosions scale wise - so I can't see how any of this is justified - Larger explosions should be done offshore on a distant uninhabited island in the outer reaches of the UK - not 20 or 30 miles from the capital and the most populated area of the UK.
Lots of residents who pay the taxes that allow the war to be fought in Afganistan have to deal with the noise and vibrations - remember that we fund this!
And did we as citizens want the war in Afganistan or approve it by referendum - no
I for one think your comments are typical for an MP - If you think its acceptable to tolerate your house being shaken - why not try it yourself!
Regards
Derek Foley
Derek Foley
Rather amusingly, I complained to their line at 11:44 and while I was on the phone to Carolyn Circus, three explosions went off shaking my house, and another single one minutes later.
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Update 21/04/2011
There is now a website where you can check for any "activity", or subscribe to email alerts, such as the one I received below.
http://www.qinetiq.com/home_shoeburyness/exceptional_activity.html
As resident in the Village of St Osyth I am getting pretty fed up with this, I have a dog that is extremely noise sensitive and for the last 3 days she has been so stressed out I am considering sedating her, not only that I work from home and because of her constant crying and shaking I am having to spend time with her rather than working.
ReplyDeleteI have phoned the 'careline' but it seems to go to answer phone.
Having said that it's the first time I have heard/felt the vibrations since last year, I wonder if there are some large tests going on, but a warning in advance would have been good.
Hi Natalie
ReplyDeleteSo much for the so called recent "limitations" on db levels. Which of course does nothing about the shockwave air pressure which of course makes our homes vibrate.
After making several complaints I now seem to be on the email list warning of activity.
Still doesn't stop me jumping out of my seat when it happens though, as there is no "schedule of times" of detonations, just which "days" it will happen on.
see below... Looks like there is a website now which you can bookmark.... http://www.qinetiq.com/home_shoeburyness/exceptional_activity.html
Notice it says "exceptional activity". Meaning the run of the mill explosions don't count presumably.
Must wreak havoc with the tourism in the area, not to mention plastering - I know my home's been replastered last year and lots of hairline cracks have appeared since the last most recent active days.
The noise levels have been particularly bad here over the last 2 days - Obviously I complained, and had a very long conversation with Qinetic's public relations officer to understand whats going on. She assured me that when they get too many complaints, they are reprimanded. But ultimately they are contractually bound to dispose of a given quantity of ordenance each day. She suggested that they do feed back complaints to the staff, so lower levels can be achieved. Another thing I realised is that potentially most of the shockwaves are affected massively by the weather, as she explained that the explosions go on a lot more often, but are sometimes not heard depending on weather conditions, and that they use acoustic modelling to predict sound levels.
ReplyDeleteDoesn't work obviously as I wouldn't have to call them after minor earthquake effects rippled across my home making it shake several times over the last 2 days!
Contacted my MP, and another neighbouring ward's MP too, but lets face it, they're a business, and do work for the government, the fact that the entire south east of England has become a lot more populated since tests began will not wash, as is the "you should have been informed about it when you bought your property" argument they give.
I've had pretty insulting letters from Qinetic after complaints stating that my home could not possibly vibrate in the way I describe. I told them yesterday that they should come here when its going on - then they'll see just how unacceptable it is. Perhaps Tendring District Council and the Land Registry should warn people its like living on a geological fault line along our coast until activity is ended at Shoeburyness.