Storm Babet: Man who lost mum in flood 'let down' by response

A man whose mother died during Storm Babet has said help for victims of flooding is taking too long to arrive.

Paul Gilbert found his mother Maureen, 83, dead in flood water inside her home in Chesterfield last month.

He said said the street was trying to come to terms with the tragedy but had been "let down" by the council's response.

Chesterfield Borough Council said it was supporting residents.

Mr Gilbert, who has being trying to clear up the wreckage in the home in Tapton Terrace, where his mother lived all her life, said: "It's horrible being down here.

"It's taking too long [for help] to come through. You're having to ring the council up to get them to come and collect rubbish.

"It's very difficult. We are having to fight for everything. We have been let down again."

The street flooded when the nearby River Rother burst its banks during heavy rain and water swept into 26 properties.

Some residents said insurance companies had been so busy they had been unable to send loss adjusters to survey damage.

Mrs Gilbert's neighbour, Stephanie Winnard, said she was still in the process of getting her house dried out after it was deluged by 5ft (1.5m) of water.

She said: "It's absolutely devastating. It's still very stressful. It hits you so hard every time you come in and you see your house in a state like this."

Businesses in the town are also counting the cost of the flooding.

The cellar and ground floor of the Anchor pub, in Factory Street, was submerged during the storm and had to close for a week.

Joint owner Layonie Rawson said previous issues with flooding had made it impossible to get insurance.

She said: "We had loss of revenue and repairs and replacing equipment and we are pushing around £20,000 [of costs].

"We just had to crack on. We are really lucky we have had a support form friends and family and members of the community. Everyone just chipped in.

"We have even had help from people we don't know turning up with packages of cleaning supplies even food parcels."

Leader of Chesterfield Borough Council Tricia Gilby said: "This has been an incredibly challenging period for the town and borough but Chesterfield is a resilient place, and our communities pull together like no other at such times.

"Over the last month we have been supporting our residents and businesses with the huge clean-up, and providing emergency and temporary housing for those affected by flood damage."

She said eight households were still in emergency accommodation following the flooding and that financial aid was available for residents and businesses through the council.

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