Steffi, I am so sorry to hear of your plight. You and yours are in my payers.
what pluck you exhibit. madelyn

...what use is posting something if it doesn`t serve a purpose...so...
I hope that this thread is more than purely an account of my situation at the minute.And therefore i`ve been thinking...Steff thinking?!!!

Seeing as these floods are predicted to hit again this weekend in the UK...and by all accounts you are experiencing similar in parts of the States...I wondered if it would help if I were to highlight a few things I personally have learned in going through this.Practical stuff I mean.
No-one unless in a demarked flood area can be prepared for the speed at which the water enters your home.I found that out the hard way.I found that as my children and I were trying to dam up one doorway with towels and the like,it was fast entering another doorway.And once through the barricade,nothing stopped it.It seeped across the floor faster than we could move ourselves.
So...
in preparation for a possible encore this weekend,we have looked at the low level of our home and it is astonishing how much stuff is stored at that level.We have totally cleared the lower cupboards [you don`t have time once it has started to flood] you don``t have space either to stack everything...so we are ready this time.
I lost personal stuff [my mums handwritten recipes ]which were stored in pretty baskets on the floor,along with magazines,brochures.etc.
A video was still in the unit again at low level on one of these compact stands.The water claimed it.
I discovered stray shoes floating around...garbage bins,heavy and stable on dry ground become boats which tip up depositing their messy contents as they sail around.
Any low level pots do the same and cause obstacles which can be tripped over as they lie unseen..as do cushions etc.
In the garden...muddy water masks plant pots..again a falling hazhard.
A forgotten garden tool or brush is a death trap,as are popping drains which burst their covers.
As the water rises we needed to shut the electrics so we needed to locate candles etc easily and quicky.Our phones were down,our mobiles uncharged...a poor oversight by us....

I scooped one lot of curtains off the floor but failed to make it with its matching pair.Ruined.
I could only have saved my suite had there have been a stronger person around.
The neighbours only just managed to rescue tiny pets,hamsters etc as they were taken up with their home and children.
I have never lived through this before.I have learned by experience.

To those who may be at risk..perhaps just one of these pointers will help.
Hope so.
Love
Steff
x

What a mess but i'm happy you and the family are all ok. Poor Texas
and OK are really getting it here,so my prayers go out to your family
and the folks in Tx. and Ok. and whoops well we are getting a little
in mo. Courious i'm glad we heard from you will the rest of the group please
speak up. Once again S.i hope you get some rest.. Sue

...I promise I won`t keep this thread going much longer.There are some other important issues which really need to be at the top of this forum ...so all I wish to add,is another heartfelt thank you to the latest folk who have been kind to me with their thoughts.Bless you.

I have spent the day cleaning up as much as possible.The professional cleaners are coming in tomorrow to disinfect and make the place a bit safer.It absolutely reeks in my home.My fridge is full of contaminated water,as are my dishwasher,dryer and washing machine..not to mention my aga.All of my cupboards are well ruined,as are their contents.The untainted stuff has had to be boxed up and removed and my garden is strewn with all the materials we desperately used to stop the water from coming in.Yes...indeed...my home and garden are well sad looking at the minute.

Quite sinister really.This morning brought sunshine and a meandering gentle beck. Not the torrential river that sucked and whirled it`s contents around two days ago. There is truth in the old saying
"What a difference a day makes"
Well I feel well equipped to add "What a difference a minute makes" and at the risk of being dubbed as too deep and analytical.....I` `think I will hold on to that thought...making each minute count as best as I can.

But then again ...I am human..flawed and forgetful. And I guess there will be many many moments when I throw away those minutes..until something catches my attention and draws me back again.

And I am not being hard on myself when that happens.Because this is quite simply....Life.

My thoughts and prayers to you folk who are going through similar.
I feel I can genuinely say...I understand.

Stay safe.
Love
Steff
x

Just to say I am thinking of you at this time

Hi...a final thank you to all of you. ECD...haven`t seen if your area is safe or not but praying it is...likewise Neil. And now I am not sure if we are about to be hit a third time but sand bags have already been deposited in our village.
Fingers crossed it will just be a precaution and not a necessity.
And now I am going to request that this thread be closed. You have all been so warm and caring.


ps...just wanted to add that the pic shown on this thread is actually a " paddle" compared to the flood at its worst.At its peak it came to the top of the white posts you see in the photo...the danger being that anyone not realising the beck was there,would have been swept away.We are so so lucky.

thats the important thing. The rest can be fixed or replaced. Soon this unpleasant episode will be a distant memory.
Let the pro's do the bulk of the cleanup!

thinking or you!!

Charlie

Dear Steffi,
What a frightening experience! Although a little late, I still want to add my well-wishes on this thread. I hope you were able to save your family photographs and important documents, even if other valuables were lost.
A flooded house is just as devastating as a burned one. We lost all our family documents when my great-grandparents house burned down. It suddenly erased our family history, my grandson and other children of this new generation will see no photographs of their ancestors, no original old land titles, no wills, no birth and marriage certificates...it's all gone.

It must be horrible for your children, to suddenly realize that their home, their shelter, is no longer a shield from the elements. Every rainy night will be a sleepless night from now on. I hope the competent authorities will be able to widen the watercourses, dig flood channels or build dikes or something to avoid future catastrophes.

A big hug
Teresa

I wan`t going to say too much more...but just had to respond to your kind messages.Thank you ...truly thank you.Today has seen the start of the professional " clean up" operation and our skirting boards and any other loose timbers have been removed for disnfecting behind them,and of course dehumidifiers have been put into place to begin the long haul of drying out the walls and floors.
Yes...we are in a MESS with a capitol M. LOL
But you know...we are all smiling and getting on with it.We could very easily break I suppose,especially when you see all your furniture piled in a heap on the back garden...and bag loads of contaminated food being thrown...etc.
BUT....and this is the important thing which keeps us going.
Unlike your own experience Theresa...we have not lost our personal things.We still have our photo`s,documents,id`s...it is all there and a fire must have been absolutely devastating.How very sad. Very sad indeed .
My children are fine too...they have been distracted whilst the clean up takes place and will both be involved in the rebuilding of it all.We will attemp[t to make it "fun"...but that is not negating the absolute seriousness of a natural disaster like this.I repeat many times...we have been fortunate.

Oh bless you for your lovely lovely messages.

Steffi

so glad the sun is shining again and that you can begin recovery.

I am sure you are seeing a very special community closeness grow from this disaster.
After my area of Florida got whammied by four hurricanes (!!) in a row in summer 2004, we were all without electricity for weeks and many had severe damage, and it truly was touching to see people looking out for one another and neighbors really becoming friends as all pulled together.

my thoughts and prayers remain lifted for you