Children’s sledge runs prove a lifeline to community trapped by snow and an impassable steep road
A COMMUNITY in the hills overlooking Galashiels were amongst the most isolated in Borders despite several supermarkets within easy walking distance in normal conditions.
Rachel Campbell, 43, knows how treacherous the slope at Ellwyn Terrace can be after her car slid downhill into a double-decker bus in 2011 – so her 11-year-old son Lewis wasn’t prepared to let any of his neighbours take the risk.
He organised a team of six local children to go doorknocking around the neighbourhood offering supply runs to the local shops on their sleds.
“Loads of people on the street couldn’t get out because the huge hill, which is the only way out of the street,” he said.
“We heard that other kids in Britain were helping out on Newsround and we thought that was a good idea. Everyone on the street knows each other, and nobody is mean so it’s a nice place to live. We got bread, milk, newspapers, sweets — and even wine.”
Father Colin, 51, helped out with the supply run for goods that the kids were just a bit too young to buy themselves.
“It’s a relatively close knit community and people recognised right away that conditions were horrendous,” he said.
“Helping each other out was the right thing to do. You don’t appreciate how difficult it can be until you get a red warning from the Government, and then you wonder how people will cope.
“You can’t drive a car, and you go to the supermarket and there is nothing left, with shelves bare for days during and after the event. It just makes you think how vulnerable you are.”