Skip to content

Residents say village flooding worst it has been

John Devine/BBC Vhari Russell has shoulder length brown hair, a grey coat with colourful woollen scarf and is standing in front of a flooded housing estate.John Devine/BBC
Vhari Russell, 47, has lived in Brampton for 20 years and said she had never seen it so badly affected by floods

A woman in a Cambridgeshire village where parts have been submerged by floodwater and sewage said it was the worst she had seen it in 20 years of living there.

Homes and roads in Brampton, near Huntingdon, have been flooded since Saturday, with some homeowners resorting to paying a private company to pump out water.

Vhari Russell, 47, said her garden was a third underwater with "raw sewage pouring down our driveway", adding she could not "use the shower, the washing machine or the loo - it has been a very stressful house".

Cambridgeshire County Council said it was working with local partners to support residents, with Environment Agency officers visiting those most affected.

John Devine/BBC Two semi-detached houses on Hansell Road, Brampton, with water lapping their front doors. The house on the left was breached and the home was evacuated. The right hand one did not have water in because the resident said it was "half a brick higher".John Devine/BBC
Residents of Hansell Road in Brampton paid a private company to drain off 22,000 gallons (100,000 litres) of water
Vhari Russell A garden with many bushes and plants filled with floodwater. In the background two patio sets are half submerged.Vhari Russell
People's homes and gardens have been underwater for days

The flooding has occurred on streets including Hansell Road, Belle Isle, Elizabethan Way, Centenary Way, Allen's Orchard and West End.

Residents told the BBC the flooding was caused by drains and brooks overflowing during the downpours.

Ms Russell, from West End, blamed the problem on recent housebuilding and the upgrade of the A14/A1 around the village.

"I have written to the highways agency to ask if the run-out lakes, which are supposed to take excess rainfall from that road, can be made bigger. It just can't cope currently.

"I contacted various authorities and have not heard back from any of them."

John Devine/BBC Michael Brown has short brown hair and dark rimmed glasses with a blue shirt under a dark coloured jumper. Behind him is a flooded housing estate.John Devine/BBC
Michael Brown lives on Hansell Road and said his two neighbours had to be rescued, but his property just survived

Meanwhile, Michael Brown, 71, a resident of Hansell Road for the past two years, said he "fought tooth and nail" to save his house from flooding, with sandbags all around his property.

He avoided water entering his home by the height of just half a brick.

"This has happened three times this year already," he said.

"People have only just got their homes sorted from the last floods and here we are again. It needs to be addressed at a higher level of flood defence.

"We had to pay a private company to suck out 22,000 gallons [100,000 litres] of water, which was the only thing we could do. We're just praying for a dry spell."

John Devine/BBC A man and a woman walking past floodwater on a street, with water overflowing the pavement and running up close to homes. They are wearing wellington boots.John Devine/BBC
Elizabethan Way is one of the affected streets in Brampton

Cambridgeshire County Council said heavy rain had caused flooding throughout the county, including at Buckden Marina, Fen Drayton and Fenstanton.

It is working with Huntingdonshire and South Cambridgeshire councils, along with the Environment Agency, Anglian Water and the Internal Drainage Board to support residents.

"Huntingdonshire District Council are continuing to carry out welfare checks in Brampton, Buckden Marina and Crystal Lakes, and are working with partners to look at what further support may be needed," it said.

"If you have an emergency housing need, please contact the district council as soon as possible. It is really important that local residents continue to report the impact of flooding so that local authorities can investigate."

The Environment Agency said it was aware of the flooding at Brampton and it extended "sympathies to those in the community that have been affected".

"Environment Agency staff are working in our virtual incident room 24/7 and are responding to flooding in multiple communities across the Great Ouse catchment," a spokesperson said.

"We have officers out on the ground monitoring flows, keeping rivers clear of blockages to reduce flood risk and visiting the communities most affected".

It has asked that anyone who has received a flood warning follows the advice on the government website.

National Highways has been contacted for comment.

Follow Cambridgeshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.

You may also be interested in
Related internet links