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Residents of flood-hit street install own defences

Ben Sidwell
BBC Midlands Today
BBC A man standing in the street talking. He is looking just passed the camera. The street is blurred in the background but the sun is illuminating the street, where the outline of grass and white houses can be made out. The man has short grey hair and is wearing a quilted black body warmer.BBC
Colin Taylor, flood warden, said residents on Greyfriars Avenue had a flood plan

Residents on a street which often floods have installed their own flood defences and water pumps in an attempt to protect their homes.

Greyfriars Avenue in Hereford experienced severe floods in February 2020 when the nearby River Wye burst its banks, flooding almost all homes.

The same area was affected again in both January 2021 and 2023, with residents creating their own flood group to help others better prepare for floods.

Colin Taylor, a flood warden who lives on the street, said they all had a flood plan and were constantly monitoring the rainfall in the area.

An older man, who has very short grey hair standing outside of a house. He is wearing a navy jumper with white and red embroidery.
Bill Jones has his own flood defences and pump to keep water out of his home

"All got a flood plan, we all know what we've got to do, how to do it," Mr Taylor said.

"So we're learning all the time the heights, the predictions, the rain flows, the rainfall on the Welsh Hills, local rainfall. It's gathering that sort of information which we can take note of and do something about."

Following Storm Dennis in February 2020 the highest-ever river level of 6.11m was recorded at Wye Bridge river gauge, with flooding a metre deep in affected properties.

The area was flooded again in January 2021 and in January 2023, with some people only able to access their properties by boat.

Kathryn Taylor A row of semidetached houses can be seen amid a flooded road with a boat in the middle where someone wearing a high visibility jacket is stood in ithe waterKathryn Taylor
People were ferried to and from homes by boat in Greyfriars Avenue during floods in 2021

Bill Jones said he had installed his own flood barriers and pumps to keep the water out of his home.

"I think it's one thing which is more necessary than paying for a car," he explained.

"If you live by the river it's one of those things that you must have. You've got to help yourself."

Another resident, Keith Insole, said flooding on the street had become an inevitability and the community were learning how to be prepared.

"We bought the house, we said we've got to adapt and learn to live with it because it's going to happen.

"It might not happen for another several years which will be great," he said.

"Every time we get the flood alerts, we've had about seven in the last two months where it's possible it's going to be flooding, you start getting prepared and start waiting."

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