Floods In Derry: The Aftermath

Flooding victims with no insurance face uncertain future.

- Alan Healy

A number of families whose homes were destroyed in the recent flooding which struck Derry now face an uncertain future because they had not taken out insurance.

Hundreds of homes were badly damaged as a result of the flooding which struck the northwest region on Tuesday night, where two-thirds of the average rainfall in August fell during a nine-hour period.

The flooding also resulted in widespread traffic disruption due to both debris and flooding.

To date, 500 requests have been registered with an Emergency Payment Scheme offering up to £1,000 to those affected by the floods.

However, many families whose homes were destroyed now face having to pay out many thousands more to repair their homes.

One of the worst affected areas was Dunverne Gardens in the Eglinton area, where almost all of the homes in the street were submerged under several feet of stagnant water and mud.

The street lies beside a small burn which overflowed due to the downpour, with the resultant flooding bringing down walls and wrecking over a dozen homes.

Such was the force of the water that a car was carried down the street on the current, and only came to a stop after crashing into a wall.

The Derry News visited the street on Friday morning, where assessors were on the ground surveying the extent of the damage, as families struggled to cope with not only the clean-up itself, but the prospect of spending the next number of months attempting to get their homes back to normal.

One family in the street have yet to see the damage wrought on their home as they are currently on holiday.

The Derry News also spoke to Steven Moore, whose family home backs on to the burn and was one of those worst hit on Tuesday night.