Events in the 2000s

This Foldout presents some events which occurred after 2000

  • 2000 The Rochdale Canal was transferred from the Rochdale Canal Company to the Waterways Trust

    The Calder flooded in Autumn

  • June 2001 Fire destroyed Lilly Lane Mill, Halifax

  • July 2001 Fire destroyed Spout Mill, Rastrick

  • 2002 The Calder flooded in Summer

  • July 2002 The final stretch of the Rochdale Canal – between Rochdale and Manchester – was reopened at a cost of £24 million, and the whole canal became navigable once again

  • Monday, 23rd September 2002 An earthquake measuring 4·8 on the Richter scale and centred in Dudley, West Midlands was felt in many parts of Britain in the early hours of the morning

  • 2003 An outbreak of bird flu caused 32 deaths across Asia.

    There was an outbreak of strain H7N7 in the Netherlands

  • Tuesday, 6th May 2003 Princess Anne, the Princess Royal visited Halifax, visiting the Children Fund charity shop in the Old Arcade

  • Saturday, 28th June 2003 The Standard Wire works at Sterne Mills, Copley were gutted by fire

  • Wednesday, 30th July 2003 Flash floods disrupted evening rush-hour traffic in many parts of the district

  • August 2003 A record-breaking summer with temperatures of 37·9° C [100·22° F] – the highest ever recorded – at Heathrow on 10th August

  • Thursday, 27th November 2003 Princess Anne, the Princess Royal visited Rastrick to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Rastrick Preparatory School and the school's becoming a grammar

  • 2004 The Divi was reintroduced

  • Monday, 15th March 2004 Princess Anne, the Princess Royal came to perform the official opening ceremony of the Calderdale Royal Hospital.

    On the 16th March 2004, she visited the Scouts Sailing Centre at Scammonden Reservoir which was opened by HM The Queen, in 1971

  • Thursday, 27th May 2004 The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh arrived at Halifax Station, and visited Halifax High School, Halifax Town Hall, and exhibitions at the Piece Hall.

    The Duke of Edinburgh met representatives from several local firms, including Crosslee of Hipperholme, Interface Europe of Shelf, Andy Thornton Architectural Antiques of West Vale, Denford Engineering of Brighouse, John Horsfall & Sons of Greetland, Warmans of Todmorden, Brisbane Moss Corduroy of Todmorden, and Heights Design of Wainstalls.

    The party then departed for Ripon

  • Tuesday, 27th July 2004 Prince Andrew made a visit to Todmorden by helicopter. He visited the Bridge Royd Works of Brisbane Moss Corduroys, and met Chris McCafferty and Deputy Lord Lieutenant, John Brennan

  • Tuesday, 10th August 2004 Most parts of the district were flooded after almost non-stop heavy rain resulted in more than one month's rain falling in one day

  • Monday, 4th October 2004 A mini-tornado, with gusting wind and rain, hit Mytholmroyd just before dawn, leaving a trail of devastation in its wake. The storm lasted only minutes. Several tree were blown down, including three 100-year-old horse chestnuts at the Dusty Miller, Mytholmroyd

  • 2005 There were cases of avian flu in the Far East, followed by others in Turkey and Greece. This prompted the British press to predict that the disease would pass to humans and cause virtual annihilation of the inhabitants of Britain, despite the fact that a total of 60 people – all of whom had worked closely with affected poultry – had died in the Far East

  • Friday, 7th January 2005 In 5 days, strong winds and rain – in the worst storms for 40 years – caused considerable damage and flooding in northern Britain. Scotland and Cumbria were badly affected. There was some local flooding

  • February 2005 A black cat was reported near Hollock Lee Cottages, Cragg Vale, Hebden Bridge

  • Tuesday, 22nd February 2005 Clough Mill, Shelf was badly damaged by fire

  • July 2005 A big cat was reported at Park Road, Elland

    A sighting of a cat-like creature in Goitside, Booth was reported in July or August

  • August 2005 There were 2 sightings of the beast with yellow eyes in Cunnery Wood, off Shibden Hall Road, Hipperholme

  • October 2005 Geoffrey Horrocks-Taylor, a farmer from Shibden, reported that one of his sheep – a 7-year-old ewe – had been killed and all the flesh stripped from its back legs. He said that the damage was so severe that it could not have been done by dogs

  • Tuesday, 18th October 2005 During a tour of West Yorkshire, Sophie, Countess of Wessex visited the district to open the new headquarters of Leach Colour at Bradley Business Park

  • Saturday, 22nd October 2005 Anthony Smith, of Thornton, Bradford, said that his dog was attacked in the village cemetery

  • December 2005 David Horrocks-Taylor saw an animal resembling a big cat in Simm Carr Lane, Shibden

  • January 2006 A Todmorden man reported hearing an unusual growl when walking along the road late one night. He later matched the growl to the sound of a leopard's snarl, and a mass of sheep wool was found scattered around the area

  • February 2006 Lynne Goldfield, licensee of the Masons Arms, Bacup Road, Todmorden, spotted a lynx-like creature as she walked her dog at Bacup Road

  • Tuesday, 7th February 2006 Buildings at Marshfield Mills, Elland were badly damaged by fire – arson was suspected

  • April 2006 A large cat – described as a lynx – was reported by a couple in Copley

  • Tuesday, 16th May 2006 Kebroyd Mills were completely destroyed by fire

  • Sunday, 2nd July 2006 Thunderstorms on a hot Sunday afternoon caused the Calder to rise 5 ft in 20 minutes – rising to a maximum level of 7 ft – resulting in extensive flooding in Todmorden and Hebden Bridge. Landslides blocked the railway line to Manchester for several days

  • Monday, 9th October 2006 Leach Works, Brighouse were badly damaged by a fire which started around 1 pm

  • Tuesday, 27th February 2007 Princess Anne, the Princess Royal visited Halifax and toured the offices of Timeform which were celebrating their 60th anniversary.

    She visited Rishworth School and opened a new sports and swimming complex on the Heathfield site

  • Monday, 25th June 2007 24 hours of torrential rain caused flooding in many parts of central and northern England. South Yorkshire was particularly badly affected

  • Monday, 31st March 2008 A big, black cat with pum-alike features was reported in the Bracken Road area of Brighouse

  • Monday, 30th June 2008 There was a large fire at the works of John Drury & Company at River Street, Brighouse

  • Thursday, 17th July 2008 Princess Anne, the Princess Royal was in Calderdale and visited the Elsie Whiteley Innovation Centre and Crow Hill End Farm, Sowerby where she watched cheese-making and sampled a new cheese created in her honour, Calderdale Royal Blue, which contains bilberries

  • Monday, 11th August 2008 Several people reported seeing strange flashing lights over Mytholmroyd around 8:30 pm

  • Sunday, 17th August 2008 Perseverance Mill, Elland was badly damaged by fire

  • Monday, 6th October 2008 A large black cat – described as a panther – was reported by a couple who were driving through Wheatley

  • Tuesday, 7th October 2008 A big, black and glossy cat was seen at Boothtown

  • Monday, 24th November 2008 Prince Charles was in Calderdale and visited Sowerby Bridge Wharf

  • Tuesday, 25th November 2008 The Duke of Gloucester visited Calderdale to open the newly-furnished inpatient unit at Overgate Hospice

  • Friday, 23rd January 2009 Princess Anne, the Princess Royal visited Elland and met youngsters at Pit Stop, Bridgefield Mill

  • April 2009 Residents at Mytholmroyd and other parts of the Calder Valley reported a continuous, low humming noise. Some said that they had experienced the sensation since October last. Environmental health officials and others were unable to find a cause

  • Saturday, 19th June 2010 Clarence Mill, Halifax was destroyed by fire which started around 3:30 pm. Sparks from the blaze set fire to a smaller mill nearby

  • Wednesday, 8th September 2010 Prince Charles visited Todmorden to promote the Prince's Start initiative for sustainable resources. See Photographs of trains at Sowerby Bridge Station

  • February 2011 A large cat-like animal was seen near Copley Woods

  • Monday, 9th May 2011 A lynx-like animal was seen at Nunlea Royd, Lightcliffe

  • December 2015 A series of heavy rains caused much flooding and subsequent damage in the North-West of England – mainly Cumbria, Lancashire, West Yorkshire & York.

    © Malcolm Bull 2021
    Revised 15:13 / 15th May 2021 / 15754

    Page Ref: C813-2000

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