Residents living near the Thames told today how their homes had been ruined as the river reached record levels.
Shepperton was worst affected, with some families evacuating the area around Thames Meadow. Jonathan Fish, 50, struggled across the waters to dry land with his wife Sharon and son James.
He said: “I have not known it this bad in 43 years here. Neighbours have some boats and we’re looking after the elderly as best we can. It is supposed to be worse tonight so we have our fingers crossed.” Bill and Lynne Clarke, who live in Dunally Park, one of the worst hit areas in Shepperton, said the waters had wrecked their house renovations.
“We have had a lot of work done and it has all been ruined. We are expecting the waters to rise two feet more. We are braced for the worst,” Mr Clarke said.
Michelle Brown, 42, had to carry her children through the floods to get to school: “We are all watching the waters inch up to our door. We are expecting it any minute and think the power will go off soon. It is a dire situation.”
In Chertsey, residents were piling up sandbags and raising possessions away from the floor as they suffered power cuts. Some people accused the authorities of being slow to act and said they were offered just five sandbags per household before the weekend. Damage to homes was compounded by overflowing sewers and Thames tributaries bursting.
Lesley Hall said her 14-year-old son Jake had cerebral palsy but last night his electric hoist failed after floodwater seeped into the house’s wiring: “My husband had to rig the hoist up to an extension cable but it’s only a matter of time before the whole lot goes.
“I’ve spent all morning trying to get Jake into a respite home.” Neighbour Clare Murchison, 45, said she raised her beds on bricks and piled her possessions on top: “I’ve got water coming from three places. Our neighbours have lived here since 1957 and say it has never been so bad.”
In Twickenham, there was flooding near Water Lane, and the Port of London Authority said the river was nearly 6ft above what they would expect it to be.
Trevor Baylis OBE, 76, inventor of the windup radio, lives on Eel Pie Island and said all houses on the river at risk of flooding should be forced by regulation to be built floodproof: “I’m very lucky I built to withstand floods.”
