Darlington family still without a home after theirs was burgled and flooded on Christmas Eve
A family is still without a home after burglars flooded theirs on Christmas Eve.
Rebecca Passman and her family returned to their Darlington home on 28 December after spending Christmas away.
But when they got back, the house was flooded with an inch of water and the sinks had been blocked with the taps still running upstairs.
Their television, XBox gaming console, Playstation, hair dryer, and some jewellery had also been stolen, but the family are still finding things that are either damaged or unaccounted for.
Watch the video report by Katie Cole.
Ms Passman said: "At the time we were more concerned that the washing machine was broken or if it was a burst water main or something of that nature.
"It was only after we’d been in the house and got a bearing of our surroundings that we realised that we’d been broken into and items had been stolen and the connection of the taps going and that damage that caused really."
She added: "The damage is quite extensive. The ceilings come down in the kitchen and all the carpets will need to be replaced.
"It’s going to take a while to dry the property out.
"Anything that was on the floor is damaged and needs replacing. Things like the furniture that are the main things that need to be replaced."
Ms Passman said as the culprit(s) entered the home, it would have been clear that young children lived in the property.
She said: "The point of entry that they’ve used is through our back patio doors, the first things they’ll actually have seen before they’ve even got through the doors is our kitchen table with a high chair.
"They’ve then come past into the living room and seen the girls' toy box quite clearly, prominently displayed in our living room and they’ve still chosen to go through with what they’ve gone through- which is really upsetting."
Although the damage itself is expected to be expensive to repair, Ms Passman said it's not the material things that are the hardest to deal with.
Ms Passman said: "The things can be replaced, the TV can be re-bought, the XBox can be re-bought, it's the fact that we haven't got a home.
"It's the fact my kids can't sleep in their own beds, that's the hardest thing to take, the fact that we don’t know how long we’re going to be out of the house for.
"It could be a matter of weeks, it could be months, we just don’t know yet, and that's the hardest thing to take."
After a few days in a hotel, the family's landlord has secured them another property until theirs is fixed.
Despite the devastation that the situation has caused, Ms Passman has still been able to find the funny side of the movie-esque Christmas crime. She said: "It does have that hallmark of Home Alone which is quite funny really.
"In the whole doom of gloom of what's happened, both Jake and I have seen the humour in the situation, and that it is like the wet bandits."
A spokesperson from Durham Police said: "We are following all lines of enquiries at this time and the investigation is ongoing."
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