Floods hit road and rail as Storm Dennis arrives
RESIDENTS LEFT MOPPING UP AFTER BROOK OVERFLOWS
STORM Dennis caused problems across Derby and Derbyshire at the weekend.
Flooding hit several major routes in and around the area following heavy rainfall.
Both the A38 and the A52 were affected by Storm Dennis and many other roads were under water.
People living in Allestree woke up to water surrounding their houses after the Cuttle Brook overflowed.
Elizabeth Godfrey, in Lens Road, which is next to the brook, said: “I’m speechless.
“The water was inside our house, we’ve had to rip the floors up. It’s only going to get worse.”
Several parts of Derbyshire were affected by the flooding and the Environment Agency issued flood warnings in 11 locations in the Derbyshire Dales.
Pictures were circulating of cars battling floodwater, roads submerged and fields waterlogged, including one vehicle which was stranded at Derby Rugby Club.
Hilary Smyth, of Lens Road, Allestree, said she woke up at 7.30am and found her house surrounded by water.
She said: “We’ve been here for years and it’s never been like this.
“We’ve been redecorating for over a year, but now we’ve had to take the carpet up and the floor will have to come up.
“We think it’s come up from under the floor too. This carpet we’ve taken up was £1,000 and we only put it in six months ago.
“It’s a pain but it is what it is.” Heather Cook, 85, of Lens Road, said the water had not got inside her house.
Hilary Smyth
She said: “The pond in the back garden has just overflowed but my house is fine.
“It’s the water from the brook at the bottom. But my house is built a bit higher up so it hasn’t affected me too much.”
She said since moving into the house in 1981 she had seen “much worse” flooding in the area.
Derbyshire police warned drivers yesterday: “If you come across a flooded road turn back and find a different route.
“It is impossible to tell the depth of the water and driving through flood water could put you and others in significant danger.”
Ambergate
We’ve been here for years and it’s never been like this. We’ve had to take the carpet up and the floor will have to come up
And Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service said they had “a high number of calls relating to vehicles stranded in flood water”.
Yesterday, flood warnings were in place at the Bottle Brook at Lower Kilburn and Coxbench; the River Derwent at Allestree, Ford Lane Bridge and Darley Abbey Park; the River Derwent at Ambaston Lane and the rivers Ecclesbourne and Derwent at Duffield.
East Midlands Railway also suspended services between Derby and Long Eaton due to flooding. There are also some cancellations between Derby and Nottingham, as well as Derby and Leicester.