Nurse ‘stood and cried’ as house flooded following heavy rainfall

An NHS nurse has said he “stood and cried” as flood water spilled into his property “within minutes” following heavy rainfall on Wednesday.

Paul Jones-King, 48, from Loftus, North Yorkshire, said it is the second time within a year that his property in St Hilda’s Place has flooded, and the third time since 2020.

The area flooded previously during the summer of 2023, with Mr Jones-King saying he feels “emotion and anger” of “here we go again”.

nurse ‘stood and cried’ as house flooded following heavy rainfall

Paul Jones-King said his property flooded ‘within minutes’ on Wednesday (Paul Jones-King/PA)

“It happened within minutes and there’s absolutely nothing you can do other than open the front (door), turn the electrics off and wait for the fire brigade to come and start pumping and watch it run through your house,” Mr Jones-King told the PA news agency.

“I work shifts and I worry every time I go to to work that the house will flood if the weather is bad.

“You watch the weather on a daily basis, you become obsessed with the weather forecast in case we’re issued with a weather warning.

nurse ‘stood and cried’ as house flooded following heavy rainfall

Paul Jones-King said his property is now ‘drying out’ but there are further issues with damp (Paul Jones-King/PA)

“I just stood and cried yesterday (Wednesday) and watched it come in. It’s that emotion and anger of ‘here we go again’.”

Mr Jones-King said his house is now “drying out” but added there were further issues of damp within his property.

“In my living room everything is in a pile, the dehumidifiers are on and it’s that continuous disinfecting because it’s sewer water that comes in the house.

nurse ‘stood and cried’ as house flooded following heavy rainfall

The outside of Paul Jones-King’s house (Paul Jones-King/PA)

“The houses smell damp and it’s things like slugs and woodlice that are all of sudden in the house – they’re attracted to the damp and the slugs come in from the nasty water from outside.”

Mr Jones-King said drainage from nearby farmland during heavy rainfall causes “rapid” draining into a local beck (Loftus Beck), which then becomes overwhelmed.

“The beck gets overwhelmed because it goes through a culvert under the road by the side of our houses – that culvert is not big enough to take the water,” he said.

“It pushes the water back into the sewer and it’s the sewer (water) that comes up through the drains and floods our houses.

“The drains in the main road lift and the water comes through the drains.”

Mr Jones-King said the flooding in the area “should be no surprise” to the local authorities and said it is the “same properties” which flood “time and time again”.

nurse ‘stood and cried’ as house flooded following heavy rainfall

Paul Jones-King said the area has flooded for the second time within a year (Paul Jones-King/PA)

“Funnily enough, the council have just delivered sandbags this morning (Thursday) which is really not helpful,” he said.

“It’s happened again and there’s lots of talking, lots of blame.

“The water board say it’s the council, the council say the water board need to do something as it’s coming from the sewers.

“The Environment Agency are not interested at all.”

He added: “The flood alert arrived 30 minutes after the water came into my house and that’s a brand new system that should have given me an early warning that there was going to be a problem.”

nurse ‘stood and cried’ as house flooded following heavy rainfall

Water on the floor of Paul Jones-King’s property (Paul Jones-King/PA)

“In order to better understand the flood risk from all of these sources, the Environment Agency, Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council and Northumbrian Water commissioned a hydraulic modelling study.

“This study is underway and will allow us to work in partnership to explore options for the long-term management of flood risk at St Hilda’s Place and the wider Loftus area.

“We also have a community engagement officer supporting residents of St Hilda Place to provide advice on flood resilience measures and develop a community flood plan.”

A spokesperson for Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council said: “The scale of the rainfall in East Cleveland yesterday caused flooding which led to a response from the emergency services, Redcar and Cleveland Council, the Environment Agency and other stakeholders.

“The council responded immediately when called out to the need for help and crews were mobilised throughout the day as the scale of the flooding became apparent.

“The crews worked with the emergency services to keep people safe. This work included making roads safe to use, clearing gulleys to allow the water to run away and providing help to residents to protect their homes.

“In relation to the flooding issues that occurred in the St Hilda’s Place area of Loftus, the council are currently working in partnership with the Environment Agency to deliver a property flood resilience scheme to try and help alleviate any further flooding issues in the area.

“The work to repair any damage caused will continue in the coming days and we would like to thank all those who gave their time and expertise to ensure people were safe in the aftermath of the flooding.”

A Northumbrian Water spokesperson said: “During spells of heavy rain, the beck in Loftus often floods and the combination of the surface and river water impacts on our networks.

“We share the community’s desire to improve the situation for the residents of St Hilda’s Place and that is why we are committed to assisting our partners at the Environment Agency and Redcar and Cleveland Council with their plans for the watercourse and culvert through the village.”

OTHER NEWS

12 minutes ago

Chiefs News: Kansas City to Partner With Hallmark on Original Romance Movie

12 minutes ago

'I Want To Be Ready!' Jets' McDonald Preparing for Breakout

12 minutes ago

All Blacks head coach Scott Robertson explains controversial selection calls

12 minutes ago

Does Commanders 'Aggressive' Offseason Mean They Rank With Texans?

12 minutes ago

Dr Doireann O'Leary on the triggers that cause acne in women way past their teens

12 minutes ago

Jets' Tyron Smith To Have Plenty of Vet Days

12 minutes ago

The New VW Golf R Wagon Is All the Car You Need but Can't Have

12 minutes ago

What to expect from Deion Sanders' Colorado this season

14 minutes ago

21 million Miniverse toy sets recalled after reports of burns and respiratory irritation

18 minutes ago

Pentagon chief speaks with Russian defense minister

18 minutes ago

Boots shoppers praise £5 moisturiser that's recommended by dermatologists and 'saves' skin

18 minutes ago

An offseason checklist for the Edmonton Oilers

19 minutes ago

Julian Assange’s eye-watering bill to fly free

19 minutes ago

Deschamps admits ‘we deserve to be second’ but expects France to click

19 minutes ago

‘Wholly unsuitable’ outdoor dining area removed following shock closure of Wexford pub

19 minutes ago

How do you spot an innovation stock?

19 minutes ago

Maguire lauds Latrell impact on Blues' Origin focus

19 minutes ago

Championship revenue exceeds wages - Deloitte report

19 minutes ago

Heartache for Dutch golfers denied Olympics by their own country: 'We don't think you're worthy'

19 minutes ago

MCG specialist addresses Maroons

19 minutes ago

4,000 missiles, 72-hour outages: Northern Israeli mayor warns of 'blackout scenario'

19 minutes ago

Patriots Reveal Full Training Camp Schedule, Joint Practice With NFC Contender

19 minutes ago

Senator Payman crossing floor a ‘big test’ for PM’s leadership: Sussan Ley

19 minutes ago

Gareth Southgate claims England fans are creating ‘unusual environment’

19 minutes ago

Crowded wildlife rehab center in Plano seeks community help

19 minutes ago

Assange’s eye-watering bill for freedom

19 minutes ago

Nuclear energy is the 'fastest way' to reduce emissions

19 minutes ago

Texans Helping Texans | Houston chef helps others break into the food industry

19 minutes ago

Assistant referee faints in Peru v Canada Copa America clash

19 minutes ago

Economists raise China growth forecasts as exports improve

22 minutes ago

How Origin coaches are feeling on game day

22 minutes ago

That’s a Wrap! The Best of Sydney Whisky Month Revealed

22 minutes ago

Australia miss out when it matters at T20 World Cup as David Warner bids farewell

25 minutes ago

Top of the FLOPS! L'Equipe hand one England star a 3/10 in their brutal ratings after drab 0-0 draw with Slovenia... but which player was deemed 'essential' to Euro 2024 hopes?

25 minutes ago

Cricket's integrity has been TRASHED as India receive helping hand for their T20 World Cup semi-final showdown with England, writes LAWRENCE BOOTH

25 minutes ago

From Centre Court to Euro 2024! Novak Djokovic jets into Munich to cheer on Serbia just hours after the tennis superstar practiced at Wimbledon as he continues recovery from knee surgery

25 minutes ago

Video: Gavin Newsom blasts 'delusional California bashers' as he boasts about 'weird, wild, free-spirited' state that produced Metallica, Kendrick Lamar, blue jeans and Barbie - but there's on big problem with his speech

25 minutes ago

Flood watch issued for parts of Chicago area as strong-to-severe storms possible

28 minutes ago

Tom Selleck and ‘Blue Bloods’ crew to celebrate after filming series finale

29 minutes ago

Australia's Warner bows out of international cricket