By Meg Jorsh

Last updated at 19:12, Sunday, 22 November 2009

Homeless or stranded after the flood, Cockermouth families have sheltered together in makeshift reception centres.

• Video: Aftermath of the Cockermouth floods

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For the last two nights, hundreds of people slept on the floor in centres including Lakeland Sheep and Wool Centre and Cockermouth School.

Rescued by the emergency services, they were given warm clothing, blankets and food.

Doctors and nurses were on hand to care for the vulnerable, while counsellors listened to those who had lost everything.

George Jackson, 60, was rescued by RAF helicopter at 5am yesterday, when his home on St Leonard’s Close flooded.

He said: “I felt devastated. I’ve lived here on my own these 30 years and never seen anything like that. All the lights went out so I couldn’t get anything out of the house – I’ve just got the clothes I’m standing in.”

When the river burst its banks in the early hours, George was in the living room looking out the window. The next thing he knew, water was flooding from the toilet and sinks, then started seeping up through the carpets.

He added: “I was shouting ‘Help! Help! Help!’ A chap came up from the mountain rescue with a light on his helmet and put me on a dinghy. We went to the veterinary clinic nearby, and they winched us up in a helicopter and took us to the mountain rescue place.”

He was driven to the reception centre at Cockermouth school, where he said he was very well treated. But he fears his home may be completely destroyed.

Disabled Anne Burn, 77, had to leave all her possessions behind when she was evacuated from the Victoria Court care home on High Sand Lane. Residents were moved out at 1pm on Thursday, just before flood water started getting in.

She said: “I’m left with nowt – I didn’t have time to get anything out. They told me to put things in bags on the top of the wardrobe, but I couldn’t get up there so I put them on the bed.

“There was four feet of water in there. I’m worried I’ve lost my grandmother’s wedding ring.”

Anne was taken to the Lakeland Sheep and Wool Centre, where she was later joined by her brother Ted Winder and sister-in-law June Winder, both 67. The couple had been cut off by flooding from their home at Derwent Mills.

Anne added: “Since I arrived, I’ve been overwhelmed with kindness. They’re that kind to you, it can actually upset you. I’ve had a priest come up to me and ask if I need help, and every five minutes someone’s asking if you’re alright.”

Ted and June had been staying with relatives, but visited the reception centre to get medication from the on-site doctor.

June said: “My husband needs regular medication, but we realised we’d left it all in the flat. We live on the second floor, but the last thing we heard there was four feet of water below us.”

Jo Lee, 28, and her stepdaughters Amy Pearson, 16, and Charlotte Pearson, 15, were rescued from their Main Street flat on Friday morning. They were carried over four feet of water by mountain rescue volunteers, along with their two dogs Chunky and Molly.

Jo said: “I took the dogs out for a walk at a quarter past one in the morning, and when I got back around two the water was just coming down the street. There were cars floating down the street, windows breaking, helicopters overhead for most of the night.”

Their electricity soon cut out, but the gas supplies stayed on and they managed to save enough water for tea and coffee. However, Jo’s fiancee Andy spent the night trapped in the flooded Trout Hotel, Crown Street, where he works as a chef.

She added: “I’ve not been able to speak to him since last night, but I’ve got a text message from him and he’s fine.”

Having sheltered at the Cockermouth School reception centre, the family now fear their car, a Volkswagen Polo, may have floated away.

Dave Heaney, 56, was rescued from his second floor flat on Station Street at 12.45am yesterday.

He said: “When the police knocked on the door, I told them I was fine, but they said I might not be able to get out in the morning. I thought I was living in Vietnam – there were two big helicopters outside and I could actually see them lifting people up in the air.”

They waded out through waist-deep water to the top of the road, where police cars and ambulances were waiting to take victims to Cockermouth School. Once there, he said, he was given “fantastic” support by staff and volunteers.

Debbie Keir, who works for Allerdale council, was given the task of managing the reception centre at Lakeland Sheep and Wool Centre.

She said: “Lots of people have broken down and been very distressed, but most of them are most upset about the police officer who’s gone missing.

“I think that’s put it into perspective for them – that what they’ve lost is terrible, but at least they’re still here.”

She added that businesses including Energis, The Co-operative and the Shepherd’s Hotel had given the centre vital support.

First published at 08:59, Saturday, 21 November 2009
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk