Fire service to rescue at Watery Gate Lane
FIREFIGHTERS rescued drivers stranded in floodwater at Watery Gate Lane seven times last winter.
Crews from Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service were called three times in December, three times in January and once in May to people trapped in stalled vehicles in the ford near Thurlaston.
The rescues typically needed three appliances and their crews which cost £660 an hour to deploy according to Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service special services charges.
Firefighters went out twice in two days, once on December 14 and again on December 15, both to stranded cars. The second incident happened late at night when two men took refuge on the roof of their car as the chilly waters rose.
On December 18 2017 they were called to rescue the people and horses in a horse box which was trapped in the ford.
On January 4 after a period of heavy rain they had to help a van driver to safety. Two days later a three women and a puppy were rescued after their car stalled. They had also climbed on to the roof of the car to escape the water.
Then on January 24 another van driver got into difficulty and was helped to safety by firefighters. He had driven through the ford earlier in the day when the water was lower but became trapped in the afternoon as the waters rose. Two days later firefighters rescued the occupants of a trapped car.
The last driver to get stuck before the rain stopped and heatwave began was in May. A man whose car was trapped in one metre of water rescued by firefighters using an inflatable rescue path.
Once rescued most of the stranded drivers had to pay up to £250 to have their damaged vehicles towed away from the ford.
There were also a number of incidents of stranded cars which didn’t involved the firefighters. Some motorists escaped without help. Others were helped from their cars by volunteers from charity Leicestershire and Rutland 4x4 Response.
Most cars have an engine air intake low down at the front. In a ford water rather than air gets sucked in and damages the engine. Water flowing into the exhaust pipe, also low down in most makes of car, also damages the engine.
Many of the drivers stranded were from outside the area and were following their SatNavs. Some ignored warning tapes strung up by firefighters and all ignored the depth gauge at the entrance to the ford.