Boxing Day Disaster - Sunday 26.12.10

Got home from the FAMILY GATHERING to phone messages. None of your happy stuff, more your MAJOR PROBLEM, PHONE THE MOMENT YOU GET THIS MESSAGE.

SO I DID.

Sams' lovely house had burst a water pipe in the loft. The FIRE BRIGADE had been out and had turned off  the flow at the roadside STOP COCK. Water had been cascading from the windows and soffits like a fountain. We grabbed torches and jumped into the car and rushed over. All this had happened at about 6pm, we got there just after 7. It was dark, and cold and the house was covered in bobbles of ice where the water had splashed and frozen as it landed. Long icicles were hanging from the guttering and the honey coloured walls were darkened with wetness and frozen to an ominous shine. The little, snow covered front lawn was all churned up where the fire service and the neighbours had searched for the stop valve cover as it hid under the snow.

WE LET OURSELVES IN.

It was dark, we couldn't switch on the lights. The place was a centimetre deep in water and still more of the stuff rained down on us from the ceiling. The neighbours followed us in. 

WE ALL STOOD, TORCHES ON, IN SILENCE. 

Sam was away for Christmas and knew nothing of all this.

WHAT A NIGHTMARE. 

A quick check through the house 

-VERY WET 

-ALL OVER.

On to a bit of making good. We bolstered between her house and her neighbours as water had moved between the two! Then we all dragged out Sams' living room carpet, it was soooo heavy that it took 5 of us to do this, then mopped the floor until it was drier. 


The electricity was disconnected apart from the downstairs sockets which were left on and were used to run a decent heater for the night.

THEN WE LOCKED UP AND CAME HOME.

Nothing else for it, but to call the insurers and then let Sam know what had happened. Christmas chocolates always help at a time like this.

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE