Flood update in Diary

I finally got to speak to mam and dad on the phone last night as they have the power back on. They’re doing quite well, it turns out the house has been designed to be flooded! The floorboards are made out of the same treated wood as ships so it’s completely waterproof, the walls are also waterproofed in the same way as bathroom walls so no water has seeped into them and they don’t need to remove the plaster or anything. I’ve always wondered why the electric sockets downstairs were all about four feet off the ground; now I know! They’ve had an electrician check them out and they’re all fine so they were able to get the power back on. The oven is also raised off the ground and that is working fine as well. So the actual fabric of the house is perfectly fine, if just wet and dirty.

They’ve had to throw out all their white goods, though; fridge freezer, washing machine, dishwasher, tumble dryer. Plus sofa, dining room table, other bits of furniture and random kitchen utensils like Pyrex dishes. But they saved most things and came out of it relatively unscathed compared to some people; dad even had the foresight to go and park the car up a hill to keep it out of the way. The people who live opposite them just have a ground floor flat so they have lost EVERYTHING. I can’t even imagine.

Apparently there was a lifeboat outside their house (it just sounds like a ridiculous phrase, dad laughed when he said it “There was boat outside our house!”) and they offered to rescue them but dad said no thank you! So they just dropped off some food and drink and left them to it! I asked dad why they wanted to stay and he said “Where would we go?” Ummm, you have seven brothers and sisters in the next town along plus countless cousins, nephews and nieces; I’m sure one of them would have put them up for a couple of days! If you look up “stubborn” in the dictionary, you’ll see a photo of my dad.

At one point, Blue, the dog, went charging down the stairs without looking where he was going and crashed straight into the four feet of water at the bottom. Dad said he shot back up the stairs, absolutely sopping wet and they had to throw him in the bathroom before he could shake. When they went in later, he said there was a quarter inch of water on the floor…! I had to laugh and ask if their dog was actually a sponge.

They still don’t have internet and all the bridges are still closed, so they’re completely cut off from the rest of the town; the only way round is a three mile drive. They used to be able to walk across the bridge and be in town in five minutes. They can see my sister’s house from their house; I would sometimes walk over to hers and have a glass of wine or two. But now it’s a three mile drive to go round so I won’t be doing that this weekend!

While everyone was trapped inside, my cousin was busy sorting out a house for my grandparents, they moved in yesterday and apparently they love it! I was surprised when my mam said that; last time they were flooded in 2009 they had to move into another house temporarily and they were really miserable, even though it was a nice house. So I’m glad they’re happy.

Roxy’s owners (the Rottweiler I walk each day) had two bags of shopping for me to take to them; one full of cleaning products and one full of food, plus a £10 note. They’re both on disability benefits so don’t have a lot of spare cash; I tried to give it back but they wouldn’t have it “Because we know your dad and he’s in a worse predicament than us.” They’ve met him about three times when he came with me to walk Roxy so now they “know” him, but I couldn’t believe it, it was so nice of them.

At the end of the phone call last night, dad said he would ring me again today, so they still have no idea I’m going up, I hope it’ll be a nice surprise for them.

I’m at work now but I’m leaving in a couple of hours to go straight up there. My car is full of things; dehumidifier, camping chairs, bags of cleaning products and food and Jay’s mini fridge. I asked dad last night if he was going to have a beer but he said it’s all warm, so this mini fridge will hold four cans of beer. My dad and granda both grabbed a bottle of whiskey on their way upstairs while the water was coming into the house; I love where their priorities lie!

Last updated December 10, 2015