AT the end of January this year, while perhaps not deserving of the title “Great” there was substantial flooding in the Parish of Newton St Cyres around the areas of Sweetham, Camps Bridge, Langford and Half Moon.

What I saw over this period was substantial community spirit. I would like to thank all those who helped in some way.

Thank you to the Flood Resilience volunteers who were out and about, monitoring the situation, putting up flood warning signs, clearing blocked drains, trying to spread the word across the community and liaising with Devon County Council.

Thank you to the local farmers who cleared drains and mud slips and helped individuals in difficulty.

Thank you to Devon County Council, who acted quickly to make Station Road usable again – within 7 days! And thank you to all those members of the community who helped friends, relatives and neighbours in difficulty.

Of course, we could always do better! As leader of the Flood Resilience Network, I really felt that the lack of volunteers in Half Moon and Langford affected our ability to support those residents.

Being a volunteer does not necessarily mean doing a lot of extra work, but it could keep you up to date with the situation.

If you were affected by the flood water, or if you live in these areas and think you would like to know more, please contact me on [email protected] or use the link on the Parish Council website to fill out a contact form.

If you are concerned about flooding in your home, Devon County Council have published an excellent leaflet called “Flood Recovery” which can be accessed from https://www.devon.gov.uk/floodriskmanagement/who-to-contact-about-flooding/ alternatively, the Parish Council has copies of this leaflet available at Coffee Mornings in the Village Hall.

We also have a large number of potholes on our roads either created or made worse by the flooding. You can help this situation either by going to this website: https://www.devon.gov.uk/roads-and-transport/ and reporting the problem (do be aware that they don’t need the problem reported more than once). Or you can contact us using the contact form on the Parish Council website.

Our Road Wardens can deal with smaller potholes on the back roads. You could even consider if you could give up an afternoon every few weeks or so and become a member of this group, who do such great work. Again, use the contact form to express an interest.

Sadly, I have been told that a surprisingly large number of cars were damaged by being driven through flood water.

Devon County Council strongly advises that you do not drive through flood water at all. Perhaps, before taking your car out in these conditions you should consider if your insurance will cover expensive repairs due to flood water damage.

Do you know the depth of water that your car could successfully drive through? Be aware that most vehicles cannot drive through anything deeper than 150mm (6 inches) as the air intake for the engine is very low to the ground. And finally, when faced with a flood, could you accurately assess the depth of water?

There may be hidden potholes, which will suddenly increase the depth, and the bow wave formed as you drive through will also increase the depth.

I would like to warn pedestrians too. It’s quite exciting when there’s a flood and there’s no harm in going to have a look. But please be aware that flood water can be contaminated by raw sewage or field run-off, that the cloudy water will disguise potholes and trip hazards and that the flow of water can be surprisingly strong. Please look after your children and dogs. It’s not safe paddling!

However, well done Newton St Cyres, the community spirit was shining through when things got tough and you showed what an excellent place this is to live.

Liz Ouldridge, Chair Newton St Cyres, Parish Council