New Year heartache as kids' Christmas presents ruined in St Helens flood
Children were left devastated when their Christmas presents were destroyed in a flooded house in St Helens.Danny Pownall, his partner Claire and their two children, aged five and 15, were sleeping soundly when heavy rains caused the Sankey Canal in St Helens to burst its banks, sending water rushing into homes on West End Road, Haydock.
The whole ground floor of Danny and Claire's home was wiped out after being hit by six feet of filthy floodwater.
Danny, 39, said: "After celebrating the New Year, we got into bed and then at 3am the neighbours rang us, screaming and shouting 'the water's coming up'.
"When I came downstairs I found it had come through the floors, through the sinks, through the toilets. The next thing we knew it came up through the grids outside."We lost everything. All the kids' Christmas presents, the TV, cooker, washer, and now we're sat here with no gas, no electricity, no nothing."He posted a video of the devastation to a St Helens Facebook group with a warning to avoid Blackbrook Road, which he described as the 'worst it's ever been in 10 years'.
Photographs showed the family's house covered in a brown carpet of muddy water, with furniture, food and cleaning products floating on the surface.
The garden was also deluged, with plant pots and grass being uprooted and furniture knocked down.He said: "We've managed to get the water out of the house now, but it's still in the garden. We've had a couple of people from the community come round to see us and we can't thank them enough.
"We've even been gifted a generator by one of our friends."People living in the West End Road terraces, near the junction of Blackbrook Road, were alerted to the flooding on New Year's Eve as emergency services attended the scene.
They remained trapped inside their homes without power as the junction was cordoned off by Merseyside Fire and Rescue.
Danny added: "It's been going on for years now. We flooded two months ago, but it only flooded to the front door. When the river expands it overflows, and because we're in a dip at the bottom all the water comes down to us."It's affected about 12 houses altogether. I couldn't put a cost on it but we've lost the whole of the downstairs. We've lost thousands and thousands and we're now just hoping the insurance will pay out.
"But we can't contact anyone today because it's New Year's Day and everywhere is closed."My mum and dad have just picked my youngest son up and he's devastated. He was scared to death this morning."An urgent fundraiser has been set up by Danny's friend, Stephen Jackson, who said: "They went to bed not knowing that the roads and the area would flood again for the second time in only a few months, leaving their house flooding and under 6ft of water."This is their house, it has been destroyed and personal possessions like children’s Christmas gifts presents, furnishings, food, and clothes.
"Even the car has gone this time. They are currently upstairs in a house they can't leave for safety reasons and have no access to power, just a phone."This is absolutely devastating for the kids and my good friends are truly heartbroken and there’s not much we can do."The fundraiser for Danny's family can be found here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/ dfecy8-please-help-urgent-need