The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Flooding in village is forcing families out of their homes
Families are leaving Freuchie because of bad flooding. People in the Fife village have faced several severe floods, with one particularly bad incident in 2020 scaring away three families.
The residents who have stayed behind feel Fife Council officials are not taking their concerns seriously enough.
We spoke to one of the families who left in the wake of the 2020 flood.
And spent an afternoon with two other village households to learn about how they’re trying to fight back.
Caitlyn and Darren Mcaleese moved to Freuchie Mill in 2015.
But flooding has forced them out of their home.
Estate agents told them flooding issues had been “sorted out”.
But their worst nightmare came true in August 2020 when heavy rain made it into their home and badly damaged the ground floor.
The couple escaped with their son Finn – who was two years old at the time.
They say their dog had to swim out because the water was too high for his paws to reach the floor.
The family lived in Airbnb accommodation for more than six months while workers repaired the house.
The family moved back for a short period, but it was not to be.
Caitlyn and Darren returned to Kirkcaldy, where they lived before Freuchie.
Do they regret leaving? “Not at all,” Caitlyn said. “We miss the people. It’s a lovely place, but it’s not worth the stress of dealing with more flooding.”
Caitlyn thinks Fife Council should be doing a lot more to protect homes.
“At the end of the day, it’s up to them to do something about it. But they won’t even meet us halfway.
“My husband built a concrete wall for a neighbour to help them so it’s not like we’re not willing to do something ourselves.
“No one from the council was in touch throughout the whole ordeal.”
Some of the worst flooding the area has seen is at Freuchie Mill, which is to the east of the village across the busy A92.
About 10 homes have frequently faced flooding there.
Couple Duncan and Linda Hutchinson have lived in their home for 11 years.
During the 2020 event they had water 2ft high in their house.
They were forced out for five months while the ground floor was completely rebuilt.
The pressure of the water was so great the
conservatory floor “floated” off ground level.
Like the Mcaleese family, an estate agent told them flooding problems “had all been sorted”.
Flooding has now caused about £22,000 worth of damage to their home.
But despite their ordeal, they are determined to stay in their “dream home”.
They say the biggest risk is surface water running downhill from Lomond Hills.
Linda said: “It’s stressful when it starts raining. It’s scary and causes lots of sleepless nights.
“When it rains heavily, you’re on alert whether to move the car so it doesn’t get damaged or washed away.
“This has happened many times.”
Linda says at least three families have moved away since 2020, each of them blaming flooding.
Jim and Diane Mullen live with the same issues. The couple are working
with a “broken” flood barrier on a footbridge near their home, where they have lived for about three decades.
They first experienced major flooding in 2008, and again in 2020, when a nearby burn burst its banks.
Jim said: “People have protected their homes, however it is not enough in these unpredictable times.
“We need joined-up thinking and action.”
Fife Council service manager Ross Speirs said the local authority always works with communities in flood-prone areas.
But he warns that “unfortunately” there is often no “quick fix”.
“We have been working with Freuchie residents in relation to various flooding incidents there.
“More flood pods have been put in place.
“Proposals are being developed to mitigate for future flood risks in the area.”