Family home of seven-year-old boy who died when floods 'filled property with toxic fumes' is submerged again after Storm Henk

READ: Firefighters demand independent inquiry into death of little boy, seven

The family home of a seven-year-old boy who died when flood waters allegedly filled the property with toxic fumes a decade ago has been inundated again.

Flooding has once more devastated the town of Chertsey in Surrey, with families evacuated from their houses and businesses forced to close.

Locals complain that a flood relief scheme designed to protect nearby Windsor and south-west London has made the problem worse for them.

Among the properties left underwater in Chertsey is the home where Zane Gbangbola died in February 2014.

His parents Kye Gbangbola and Nicole Lawler claim their son was killed after their house was ‘infused’ with hydrogen cyanide from a former landfill site during the previous floods.

Zane’s father was left paralysed from the waist down in the same incident and was found unconscious just six feet away from his son’s body.

Seven-year-old Zane Gbangbola died in February 2014. His parents Kye Gbangbola and Nicole Lawler claim their son was killed after their house was ‘infused’ with hydrogen cyanide from a former landfill site during the previous floods

Firefighters demanded an independent inquiry into death of seven-year-old boy

Firefighters supported the couple’s version of events after discovering the deadly nerve gas inside the property – but an inquest concluded that the schoolboy’s death was due to carbon monoxide poisoning.

Now, following the latest floods, posters calling for a fresh inquiry into the tragedy outside Zane’s family home are suspended above knee-deep river water.

The damage caused by Storm Henk is the worst the area has seen since 2014.

Large swathes of England have been submerged in the past few days – but residents in this part of Surrey say the water damage is being exacerbated by the opening of floodgates intended to protect nearby Windsor and south-west London.

They say the Jubilee River flood relief scheme, built in the late 1990s to alleviate flooding in neighbouring areas, has made the problem worse for towns like theirs downstream.

Resident Emma Sayle said: ‘Until Windsor stops being the priority when flooding starts and we are an afterthought, this will keep happening.

‘Our house is now flooded on the Thames side. We only flooded because of the absolute s**t-show of river management upstream. If the clowns could stop running the circus, that would be great.’

The house in Chertsey where Zane Gbangbola died during flooding in 2014

Local business owner Debbie Russell echoed Ms Sayle’s concerns, explaining: ‘In 2014 we had the army delivering sandbags, helping people evacuate their homes.

‘This year, nothing. No sandbags. No help. The council just tell you to call 999. The Environmental Agency won’t ring you back. There’s sewage flowing through people’s homes – it’s a disgrace.’

While residents of particularly hard-hit areas of the flooded town were evacuated from their homes on Tuesday morning, there was no sign of emergency services by mid-afternoon.

One man living in a waterfront home said the only communication he had received about the flooding from officials was a warning email last Friday.

Ben Spencer, the Tory MP for Runnymede and Weybridge, said: ‘I know many residents are concerned about the possible impact the Jubilee River has had on local flood levels.

‘This is an issue which has been raised to me a number of times, which I have raised directly with the Environment Agency, and they have assured me that the upstream flood alleviation measures do not increase flood risk locally.

‘However, following these latest floods I believe there are a number of issues to be further looked into, including the dredging and maintenance of our rivers and waterways.

‘I will be raising these on behalf of residents once the immediate flood risk has passed.’

A spokesman for the Environmental Agency said: ‘Our priority is to protect communities from the impact of flooding and flood defenses are not permitted if they increase the risk of flooding elsewhere.

‘Extensive modelling and analysis has shown that the use of the Jubilee River gates has very little impact on water levels at downstream communities, including Windsor.’