A mother-of-three told how her house was flooded with devastating waist-high water during severe downpours brought on by Storm Dennis.
The fourth named storm of the season battered the country with 75mph gale-force winds and more than a month’s worth of rainfall in 48 hours.
Tracey Newman, 46, woke up in the early hours of Saturday morning to the sound of running water, only to discover that her home in Nantgarw, near Pontypridd, South Wales, was flooded.
Mother-of-three Tracey Newman, 46, told how her house in Nantgarw, near Pontypridd, South Wales, was flooded with devastating waist-high water during severe downpours brought on by Storm Dennis
Ms Newman woke up in the early hours of Saturday morning to the sound of running water, only to discover that her home was flooded
Ms Newman called the police when she first saw the water, but the water level grew further and eventually reached her waist. Pictured: The high water flooding Ms Newman’s home
She screamed to wake up her son Tien, 15, who was asleep on the living room sofa, and the teen waded through the knee-high water to safety.
Ms Newman called the police but the water level grew further, eventually reaching her waist.
Ms Newman said: ‘I woke up at 3.45am when I heard water pouring. I thought the washing machine had burst.
‘I went downstairs and the water was knee-high. Tien, my son, was asleep on the sofa.
‘I was screaming and shouting for him to wake up. He waded through the water to get upstairs. It was terrible.
‘I phoned the police and they told me to stay indoors, go upstairs and carry as much as you can.
‘By now the water was up to my waist. We have lost everything downstairs.
Ms Newman lives with Tienne and daughter Aiko, 16, and her two dogs. Pictured: The devastating flooding outside her window
Ms Newman said: ‘I woke up at 3.45am when I heard water pouring. I thought the washing machine had burst.’ Pictured: The floods caused her garden shed to float
‘At this point we heard an almighty bang. I thought a wall had come down or the house was moving. It must have been furniture falling over.’
Ms Newman lives with Tienne and daughter Aiko, 16, and her two dogs.
She said: ‘Firemen are in our street and everyone is shouting out their bedroom windows to them.
‘They’ve asked if we are OK and told us to pack a bag. They’ve said we are a priority to get us out as we’re in the worst area.
‘It’s been awful. It was really frightening.’
Ms Newman added: ‘Firemen are in our street and everyone is shouting out their bedroom windows to them.’ Pictured: Flood water outside her house
Business in Pontypridd also felt the brunt of the storm, as cafe workers and store owners attempted to clean up the devastating damage from Saturday night.
Emma Jamal, 40, of Kookoo Madame boutique, told how she couldn’t believe her eyes when she went to the shop at 5am on Sunday to find ‘water half way up the shutter’.
‘All of the furniture inside the store has been knocked over by the force of the river.
‘Some of my cabinets take four men to move because they are so heavy but they have all crashed to the floor.
‘It’s so devastating to see and I don’t even know where to start or what to do next.
‘The water dramatically dropped while I was here. Within an hour it was like somebody had pulled a plug. It was unbelievable.’
She added: ‘There’s nobody here. No emergency services.
‘This is our livelihood. It’s our life. We just don’t know what to do. We need help from the emergency services.’
Waiters were seen mopping up dirty water and mud from the floor inside nearby Cafe Fresco.
Owner Eddie Kaya, 35, was supposed to be celebrating his son’s birthday but rushed to scene to begin the clean-up.
He said: ‘It was worst at about 2am. It is awful.
‘We are just trying to get as much water out as possible and have had people offering to help.
‘We don’t know how long it’s going to take but we are going to try and clean up the mess.
‘It’s my son’s birthday today and my birthday next week so it is terrible timing for us.’