Catcliffe flood: Thanks and gratitude for emergency services and volunteers

Firefighters and volunteers from the Yorkshire Lowland Search and Rescue team spent yesterday on boats and wading through floodwater to help residents in a Rotherham village.

Around 120 properties were evacuated when river levels became dangerously high as Storm Babet raged.

Roads then turned into lakes and homes were engulfed with water. Cars disappeared in the floodwater.

At one point, the water was so high that it almost covered a telephone box.

Fire services bosses posted on Facebook that they "couldn't be prouder" of the crews who helped out in Catcliffe yesterday, and others have been quick to also share their thanks and gratitude.

Lesley Jarvis was one of the residents helped by firefighters.

She said: "Amazing work. An enormous thank you to the emergency services for all you have done in the last 24 hours at Catcliffe and a special thanks to the fire and rescue team with the raft who rescued me from my house on California Drive."

Max Shirt added: "You are all amazing!! People don’t realise what you do."

Chris Taylor said: "Heroes,each and every one of you. Well done."

Fiona Cowie added: "Absolutely amazing job, helped me yesterday."

Alison Downend posted: "Thank you to everyone. Always there as ever when needed. God bless you all."

And Rachael Illingworth said: "Absolutely amazing. Unsung heroes."

The owner of Lords and Ladies, a hairdressing salon and barbers in Catcliffe, was fortunate not to flood. The water was just inches away from her business premises, which she described as a "narrow escape".

In a Facebook post, she said: "I feel extremely lucky that my salon hasn’t been flooded.

"I would like to take this opportunity to thank each and every person that messaged and offered help. You truly don’t realise what a wonderful place Catcliffe is and I for one am proud to have lived here my whole life.

"I would like to say an extra special thank you to my lovely friend Catherine for helping move as much of my stuff upstairs as we could and my friend Nicola, the owner of Twisted Tanning at Brinsworth, for the offer of a room if I was to have been flooded, I honestly appreciate you so much.

"If anyone wants to donate essential items for the flood victims I’m more than happy to use upstairs in my salon to store and distribute.

"Thank you from the bottom of my heart. It’s times like this you really do strip back and realise what’s actually important."