Floodwater remains outside a Didsbury hotel where hundreds of people were evacuated on New Year’s Day. Police said 445 people were rescued from Palatine Road on Wednesday evening (January 1).
They included guests and staff at the Britannia Country House Hotel, which had been used to house asylum seekers. Those who were rescued from the hotel were seen being taken away to safety on buses.
Firefighters used boats to wade through ‘waist high’ water and reach the hotel, before bringing people safely away from the scene. Images from this morning (Thursday) show flooding remains on Palatine Road outside the hotel.
The road is currently impassable between Barlow Moor Road and Chretien Road. Signs have been placed in the road warning people of floodwater.
Cars remain parked outside the Britannia Country House Hotel, surrounded by murky floodwater on the ground. Residents at some properties on Palatine Road and the surrounding streets were also evacuated.
Sarah Baram, 40, was evacuated from her top floor apartment along with her neighbours in the block. “At 9am I came down in the lift, opened the doors to the car park and all of the water started pouring into the lift,” she said.
Flooding on Palatine Road in Didsbury
(Image: Jason Roberts /Manchester Evening News)
“We came outside through the stairs and the water level then, I’d say, was maybe only calf deep. We went to the garage to get the car and it was probably knee deep in the basement.
“We came back at 11 and the water level had risen half a metre or so. Now, we have been stuck, not expecting we wouldn’t be able to get back in. We’ve got no stuff. He [her son] doesn’t even have any trousers bless him.”
Palatine Road remains closed due to flooding
(Image: Jason Roberts /Manchester Evening News)
In an update issued last night, a Greater Manchester Police spokesperson said: “This evening, after collaboration between partner agencies including GMP, Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service, and the local authority, we have been able to safely evacuate 445 people including residents and members of staff from a hotel on Palatine Road.
“Thankfully, no injuries have been reported, and those who have been displaced continue to be supported by the local authority.” The Home Office confirmed the hotel had been used as accommodation for asylum seekers, who have now been found an alternative place to stay.
Flooding on Palatine Road in Didsbury
(Image: Jason Roberts /Manchester Evening News)
A Home Office spokesperson said: “An asylum accommodation hotel in Manchester has been affected by severe flooding in the area. The Home Office is working closely with the local council and emergency services. All individuals have been evacuated to safety and provided with alternative accommodation.”