Thames Barrier
London's flood defense
The Thames Barrier is a movable flood defense system spanning the River Thames in southeast London, designed to protect the city from exceptionally high tides and storm surges.
Its steel gates normally rest on the riverbed but can rotate upward to form a continuous wall blocking incoming water.
The Thames Barrier has been raised hundreds of times since opening in 1984.
- tidal riverWaterway affected by ocean
- flood gatesControllable dam openings
- defenseProtection against harm
- rotatingTurning on an axis
- flood mitigationReducing overflow damage risk
sluice gates · closure · climate adaptation · climate change · sea level rise · civil engineering · engineering marvel · flood management · control room · estuary · disaster preparedness · protection · tide · rising waters · erosion control · water · hydraulic · river
- Thamestidal river, riverbank, towpath, embankments, London Bridge
- Thames Estuarytidal range, mudflats, salt marshes, shipping channel, Chatham
- British Inventionssteam engine, jet engine, spinning jenny, power loom, telephone
- canalsGrand Canal, Panama Canal, Suez Canal, Erie Canal, canal boat
- East LondonWhitechapel, Stratford, Shoreditch, Docklands, Tower Hamlets
- local governmentcity manager, aldermen, city hall, councillors, councillor
Thames Barrierflood
Overwhelming water overflow
tidal surge · storm surge · inundation · breach · overflow
Thames Barrierdam
Water-holding barrier
Hoover Dam · Three Gorges Dam · weir · hydroelectric dam · reservoir
Thames Barriercoastal flooding
Seawater overtaking shore areas