Homes 'wrecked' as brook bursts its banks and residents battle flooding

Some residents said homes had been left "absolutely wrecked"

Residents have been left counting the cost after a Birmingham brook burst its banks and sent water surging into homes – with frustrated locals saying they were forced to take matters into their own hands.

People living around Hassop Road spent hours battling the aftermath of the flooding on Wednesday, clearing debris and trying to keep the brook flowing as further heavy rain threatened the area.

Some residents said homes had been left "absolutely wrecked", with many voicing their frustration about what they describe as a lack of help after a brook overflowed.

Residents were out on Thursday morning removing debris from the road and clearing the area around the brook, with wood, metal and other detritus found littering the area.

The brook was back to running at a normal level by mid-morning, but residents said they had been working since the early hours of the morning in heavy rain to keep the area from overflowing again.

Andy Smallman spoke about what he had seen and also questioned why the council hadn't sent anyone out to help.

He said: "The brook was about up to my ankle and if you were to put your foot in that water now, it's up to your ankle.

"The water was above the guardrail, so about eight feet higher than usual.

"The water was completely submerging the rails that have been put in place to protect the brook, and then it's obviously subsided onto the road. Cars have been stranded and Houses have had water up to their letterbox.

"I think it was around a decade or so ago. I moved in shortly afterwards, but if you just Google the Beeches Estate flooding, you'll see a picture of a man canoeing past the Beeches Pub.

“That's how bad it was, and it's all because of this brook.

"Upstream, there's another brook and the Calshot Estate has been flooded because of a brook that I believe is on the Nether Hall Estate.

"Our frustration is with the predicted weather over the next three or four days to be the same, which is why I'm down here this morning because the rain came down heavy again this morning.

"This morning. It took about three or four of us this morning to clear that, and there was about eight of us last night to clear that.

"Nobody's come down, no authorities. I spoke to the fire brigade last night and they were dealing with people on the island just further down on the Beeches estate.

"Their homes are are absolutely wrecked on the on the lower floors and their garden, But the response was that it's a brook and we can't do anything about that and, still, there's no local councillors.

"I've been here now since 8am this morning. It's the first thing I did as I heard the rain and put my boots on.

"I feel frustrated, but equally proud of myself, my road, and my community for getting stuck in and getting to work.

“We put ourselves at risk as well. If you look inside that brook, you know it only takes you to look over the guardrail to see how vicious that can be.

“With that water, it only takes one accident to happen, or one of those guardrails to disconnect, and you're in the brook, you're underground, you're gone.

"For the sake of our own properties, we've had to get stuck in."

Another resident who had been there to help with the effort was Will Wall, alongside his partner Jenny Silvers.

He said: "It's just annoying that they said that they'd improved it from what it was eight years ago.

"We've assessed it and It looks like they've used some like chicken wire to hold back the the the bank.

"It's then burst, and then got stuck down here, and then all this rubbish just gets stuck.

"There's an allotment at the top where all the compost bins have floated all down.

"We've been down here since 8am and it's meant to get worse at 3pm this afternoon and all evening, so we're just going to end up having to spend all day down here, but where's the council?

"My message to the council would be please do something to help us because my argument is they they nitpick at the smallest things, and I know it's their job and they're following their procedures, and I understand that, and that's fine, But stuff like this, where people are going to have to now go through home insurance and they've lost valuable items, then they need to help."

Doris Willis, Site Secretary of Thornbridge Avenue Allotments, said she had previously heard of plans for a flood prevention system, but said she still hadn't heard anything.

She said: "I live on the other end of Thornbridge Avenue, and it's the worst it's been for us in 20 years.

"We were quite worried because of the leaves having been removed from drains, etc, but more importantly, we've been promised a 10-year flood prevention scheme, which has never materialized.

"For the people at the other end of Thornbridge Avenue, it's the second time in about three, four years and they've been decimated again, and something needs to be done urgently because it's unfair on the residents.

"The community worked hard. I'm also a local litter picker and we do clear drain and planes and debris when we're out every week, but we've noticed that it's become an impossible task, and it needs a proper community clean by the council, as well as putting in that flood prevention scheme, which is really urgently needed.

"Please help the residents to get a solution quickly."

Birmingham Council have been approached for a comment.