OPERATION SUMMER RESCUE
RAF Chinook flies in sand bags to save flooded town
A MILITARY helicopter was sent in to save stranded residents yesterday when a river burst its banks following extreme rainfall.
The RAF Chinook dropped dozens of massive sand bags to try to plug the breach in the banks of the River Steeping.
Hundreds were evacuated from their homes in Wainfleet All Saints, Lincolnshire, where flood waters rose to waistdeep after two months of rainfall fell in just two days. Residents and fire crews had been working around the clock to stop the flooding but they were forced to call for military assistance.
The heavy-lift aircraft dropped around 80 one-ton bags of sand and gravel into the breach.
Police were advising residents of the town not to return to their properties last night, with the gap not expected to be plugged until late yesterday.
More than 100 properties were evacuated and authorities said up to 720 could eventually be affected by the floods.
A number of homes were without electricity after a power substation was inundated.
Among those forced from their home was Jean Hart, who has lived in the town near Skegness with her husband Kevin for 40 years and said it was the worst flooding she had seen. She said: ‘To see our house under water is horrendous. The whole of the house is completely devastated.’
Mrs Hart said the emergency services knocked on their door at midnight and they had to leave with what they had on – but luckily they are able to stay with friends in a dryer part of the town until it is safe to return home. ‘People have been amazing, people we don’t even know,’ she added.
Assistant Chief Constable Shaun West, of Lincolnshire Police, said the rescue effort was showing signs of success.
He added: ‘Where there were thousands of gallons of water gushing through that breach when I started, that is starting to stem. We are hopeful we will be able to stem the flow and block the breach.’
Some 15 flood warnings and 51 flood alerts were issued by the Environment Agency yesterday, with the majority in place across the Midlands and North West.
Passengers on a train from London to Nottingham were stranded for eight hours near Corby, Northamptonshire, on Thursday evening after rain caused a landslide and flooding.
Around 500 were on board the 2.34pm East Midlands service from St Pancras.
A second train, travelling from Sheffield to London, came to the rescue of the stricken passengers, but that too became stuck.
The passengers included journalist Mark Waldron, who said: ‘We were stuck between a flood in one direction and a landslip in the other.
‘Most of the passengers took it in good spirits. We were sharing bottles of water and food and letting others sit down.
‘People were getting frustrated but that was mainly because they were hungry and tired and they mainly took it well.’
Others posted pictures on social media and shared their experiences. Diva Augusta said: ‘So I’m on the Corby Nightmare Train. Six hours in and people are thinking about ordering Dominos for 600.’
Passengers were helped off the train and led to safety by emergency services at around 10pm.
A spokesman for East Midlands Trains later thanked passengers for their ‘patience and understanding’. Some of the train operator’s routes were still affected yesterday as Network Rail worked to clear the line.
Weather forecasters say conditions across the country will improve from today and added that, despite a week of heavy rain, this June was unlikely to beat the record set in 2012, when an average of 5.9 inches of rain fell across Britain.
The Met Office said warmer air building over Europe would bring temperatures in the mid20s Celsius (mid-70s Fahrenheit) in parts of the South East next week.
‘Thousands of gallons gushing’