Residents of Palatine Road in West Didsbury have spoken of their ordeal after serious flooding on New Year’s Day left them trapped in their homes.
Torrential rain on December 31 and into the early hours of January 1 caused the River Mersey to burst its banks, quickly spilling onto neighbouring flood plains and then the streets beyond.
The dramatic scenes continued yesterday evening as scores of residents of the flats and hotels along the road, including one housing asylum seekers, were rescued in boats by Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service and Bolton Mountain Rescue.
The M.E.N understands they were then signposted to alternative accommodation, including the nearby Didsbury Mosque, which provided residents with a hot meal, dry clothing and a dozen or so beds for the night.
“Everybody in the local community was tremendous,” Councillor Debbie Hilal told the M.E.N. She is the Labour councillor for Didsbury West and was at the mosque by 5pm.
“Lots of bedding was delivered: duvets, rugs, blankets, clothes. A couple of residents came by with baby formula as we were short, and they stayed nearly all evening. The community really came together to help, it was a great effort.”
“The mosque were so kind as well. They made a hot meal, chicken and rice, and nobody went short of food: cakes, biscuits, crisps, everything you could think of.”
Donations of clothes and bedding collected inside Didsbury Mosque for residents affected by floods. The mosque put a call-out on Facebook
“It was a very stressful and difficult situation for the residents affected, but as a councillor I want to express my thanks to the mosque, the council, the fire service and police, and everybody who came to help.”
Today, the water had begun to recede since yesterday, no longer completely covering Palatine Road, which was just about passable by midday.
Police were still present, directing traffic, and sizable crews from Electricity North West and United Utilities were working there this morning. But the woodland edging the road remained under several inches of water – and the signs of damage were everywhere.
Damaged fencing along Palatine Road in Didsbury
(Image: Manchester Evening News)
There were fences ripped, torn down altogether or even flung upside down by the flood. Masses of twigs, branches, leaves and other debris piled up by the roadside.
But most striking of all was an abandoned car, left with its windows open, listing slightly, still up to its alloys in an enormous puddle. The ground was covered in a film of mud, and everywhere the stench of dirty water.
Palatine Road in West Didsbury
Further along towards Northenden, where one resident claimed the Mersey had almost come over the bridge entirely, the flat plains of golf clubs and hotel car parks were still completely submerged.
To the rear of the flats at 234 and 236 Palatine Road, cleanup appeared to have begun. Behind the buildings was an enormous pile of tree stumps and other debris, alongside a tide of mud.
One resident, who did not give his name but said he worked in construction, was clad in a high-vis jacket and wellies, inspecting the damage. He said the water had almost reached the top of the gate posts, and that he had been rescued by firecrews in a dinghy yesterday evening – “like in Titanic”, he laughed.
Cars parked in the forecourt of the flats didn’t have any obvious signs of external damage, but videos seen by the M.E.N showed the vehicles all partially (and in some cases, fully) submerged as waist-high floodwater poured in from the road through the gates.
The resident predicted that all would be written off. “Insurance companies are going to be busy,” he said grimly.
Flats on Palatine Road, Didsbury
(Image: Manchester Evening News)
Another resident, Abi, had been at home when the waters rose. “It was really scary. It was terrible,” she said.
“We’ve had no power since yesterday morning. We’ve had no light and no heating, and can’t cook anything. I’ve just been eating biscuits all day.”
“The fire service came to evacuate us at about 10pm but I didn’t want to wake my friends so I stayed here. It was so cold overnight. My neighbour brought me candles…I don’t know what I would have done without them.”
“I’m not working today but I’m going in anyway, just to charge my phone and get a hot drink. My phone’s been dead so I can’t even tell people I’m OK.”
Debris piled up behind a block of flats on Palatine Road
(Image: Manchester Evening News)
47-year-old Mohammed, who has lived on Palatine Road for ten years, was also stuck in his flat all day. He said the first sign that something was wrong was a persistent car alarm going off nearby.
“I thought maybe someone had forgotten to lock their door. Then I looked out and saw the white car in the middle of the road, hazards flashing, no driver inside.
“I went down to see if I could help – but I couldn’t leave the building.”
He said the power went out at about 9:30am (the M.E.N understands it has now been restored as of Jan 2).
“I was sat in the cold, no food, no light, nothing,” he told the M.E.N. “My phone died and I had nothing for a torch other than a lighter, which only gave me a few seconds of light.”
He eventually was rescued in a dinghy by fire and rescue services at about 10pm, and went to stay with a friend for the night. He said the fire crews did “a really good job”.
“I felt bad about sitting in the boat while they pushed me. I offered to walk – but they said it wasn’t safe.”
“I’ve never seen anything like this. It floods from time to time – but never like this.”