วันอังคารที่ 19 สิงหาคม พ.ศ. 2551

Action demanded on Belfast floods


Flood victims in Belfast have been telling Newsbeat they want more help from the local authorities.

It's the second time in 14 months many homes in the city have been flooded.

There was so much water, the drains couldn't cope, forcing raw sewage into homes in the east of the city.

Hundreds of people had to be evacuated and many are still clearing up the mess.

The whole of Neil Shearer's ground floor was flooded.

"We've basically lost the cooker, washing machine, fridge, TV, the sofas and all of my DJ equipment. It's all wrecked," he said.

"We haven't even tallied it up yet but I'd say you'd be talking a couple of grand."

Stacks of furniture and electrical equipment are piled high outside people's homes on Merok Crescent where Neil lives with his mate Sammy.

One of the main issues residents are worried about now is hygiene.

Neil said: "Some of the neighbours in the street have said they've seen rats running about.

"Their concerns are that they've got young kids, you know what I mean?"

And that's what the Blakely family, four doors up, are worried about.

Not only was their street under three feet of rain water, it was covered in sewage too.

It all came through Phillip's back door.

He said: "We've got two young kids here and it was just raw sewage coming in.

"There was excrement floating in it. There was actually faeces and toilet paper floating about. It was just disgusting."

Sewage concern

Five-year-old Maya saw it all. She said: "It looked all brown. It was like all over the kitchen.

"It looked like a dirty old pool, deeper than my brother Jude."
And it's the second time in just over a year Phillip and Joanne have had to mop up this sort of mess.

Joanne is Phillip's wife. She said: "Last year we thought it was a one off, extremely bad weather that couldn't happen again.

"We put it down to bad luck and now 14 months later we can't believe we're sitting in the same position."

Joanne's main concern is the sewage left behind on the streets.

Joanne said: "It is a hygiene issue. How often can you be bleaching the floors and rugs?

"You can't be doing that everyday with two young children."

The Government's promising each house £1,000 in compensation, but many people say that's not enough.

Neil Shearer says they just need more help.

He said: "At the moment, to be honest with you, we're just not happy having to live upstairs for four months basically waiting for the flood water to pour out."

Flooding worry

Many people are worried about their homes being flooded again.

The rains have eased for now, but residents want something to be done in case the bad weather returns.

"We want to see the drains sorted out, even digging them up to see what the problem is," said Phillip.

The Blakelys say they won't be able to claim on their insurance for a third time and are concerned the floods may affect the value of their home.

Joanne says she can't go through all of this for a third time.

She said: "At the end of the day we want to see action not talk.

"It's all very well being given £1,000 compensation but it doesn't really go anywhere near.

"We just want to live in a nice house and keep it that way."

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