LOCAL RECORD

The Mark on the Wall

There is a dark line on the riverside brickwork that becomes easier to see in dry weather. It is not a formal flood marker and I would not trust it as a measurement, but it tells you something useful all the same.

The colour changes about halfway up the lower courses. Below it, the brick is rougher and carries the residue of repeated wetting. Above it, the wall looks ordinary. If you did not know why the line was there you could pass it every day without noticing.

The Severn leaves records everywhere, although most are temporary. Mud on railings. Debris caught above head height. A path surface lifted at one edge. Fresh gravel where there was none before. Then people clean up and the city resumes looking permanent.

That is partly why I started River Ledger. Official gauges and warnings matter, but so do the physical after-effects people live beside. They show where water actually went and what had to be repaired afterwards.

I checked the wall again today. Nothing dramatic has changed. That is useful information too.