Residents ‘fear the worst’ after being evacuated due to Storm Henk flooding
Billing Aquadrome, on the River Nene near Northampton, has been evacuated due to flooding.
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Your support makes all the difference.Residents evacuated from their homes in Northamptonshire due to flooding caused by Storm Henk have said they are “fearing the worst” about damage caused to their properties.
A flood warning is in place for the River Nene at Billing Aquadrome and the surrounding industrial parks near Northampton, with the area having previously been given a severe flood warning, meaning there was a risk to life.
While the severe warning was downgraded on Wednesday morning, the Environment Agency said flooding should still be expected in the area over the coming days.
On Wednesday, fire and rescue teams could be seen wading through flood water at the site to evacuate houseboat residents in a rubber dinghy, after a path connecting boats to the shore was submerged.
But in the caravan itself, if water gets in there, you may as well scrap it and start again
Robert Britchford, one of several residents evacuated from caravans at the site, estimated that around 2,000 people had to leave their properties on Tuesday afternoon.
He said: “It’s the second time in three years that it has flooded. I moved my cars out of the way, and I thought I would try and wait it out because I thought it would be nice today, but no, the evacuation notice went out at 2.30pm yesterday and that was it.
“I’m a bit anxious. We felt it was coming but we hoped it wouldn’t. Now we have to find hotels. They won’t let us back on until this is all sorted, so it could be a month before we come back on.”
He added: “You are hoping for the best but you’re fearing for the worst. They’ve turned the electrics off so everything in your freezer has gone, and in the sheds how high it is will depend on whether the washing machine and tumble dryer have gone.
“But in the caravan itself, if water gets in there, you may as well scrap it and start again. That’s the fear at the moment – how high has it gone? If it has gone over door level, I am totally screwed.
“To replace my caravan now would be around £150,000 and I haven’t got £150,000 lying around.
“I don’t feel annoyed. It’s the not knowing that gets to you. You want to have a look but we can’t get on (to the site).
“It doesn’t look promising at the moment so it’s just a case of wait and see and hopefully we can get back on at some point.”
The Environment Agency website said that the storm had brought heavy rainfall causing the River Nene to rise to “very high levels with deep fast-flowing water”, adding that water levels will remain high for “the next few days”.
One resident said that he and his neighbours were “worried sick” about whether they could return to their homes but had heard “nothing” from officials about the extent of the damage caused.
Meanwhile, many have had to source alternative accommodation, with the nearby hotel, The Quays, now fully booked, according to staff at the adjoining pub.
Eddie Hancock, a resident who lives around two miles from Billing Aquadrome, said he had never seen the water so high in around 30 years of living in the area.
He said: “Our house is pretty much OK as we’re further over, we’re up a hill, but it’s drastic. I have never, ever seen emergency services over there.
“It’s worrying. I feel sorry for the poor people on Billing Aquadrome.
“It’s mad, I wouldn’t want to be over there. It has never, ever been this bad. I thought I would come down and have a look and it is bad. It’s scary.”
The flood warning for Billing Aquadrome is one of 295 issued across the country due to flooding caused by Storm Henk, as of noon on Wednesday.
A further 330 flood alerts have also been issued, meaning flooding is possible.
There has been widespread travel disruption across the country, with one motorist, a man in his 50s, killed when a tree fell on his car near Kemble, in Gloucestershire.