After Storm Desmond left 1,397 people in Kendal homeless, the busiest place in the Cumbrian market town was a help centre set up to aid those whose homes were devastated over the weekend.
A steady stream of volunteers brought food, clothing, bedding and toys to the makeshift centre in the former tourist information office. Their generosity outstripped demand from those whose homes were ravaged by the deluge.
As the town tried to return to normal on Tuesday, desperate families arrived at the Kendal Cares help centre to get advice from the council, electricity board, insurance and charity representatives who manned the desks.
Insurance giant Aviva had sent a representative, who said they knew that many customers delay making claims because they don’t have their policies with them, or have other priorities. “Even people who don’t want to claim need advice,” said the representative.
Among those without insurance was Carol Nicholson, a mother of two whose ground-floor flat in the Waterside estate had flooded. She told how the river Kent, which burst its banks for the first time since flood defences were put in during the 1980s, had left water levels in her home thigh high. Now the water had receded all her furniture was ruined, her electrics were sodden and unusable and mud and sewage silted up her property. “It absolutely stinks,” she added tearfully.
Like many of the victims she relied on family for refuge, taking shelter in her daughter’s flat, even though that was also inundated.
Deborah Nicholson knew she was in trouble at 4pm on Saturday afternoon when water started bubbling through the floor of her three-bedroom house, also in Waterside. Three generations of her family then spent the weekend huddling on the top floor.
All that is left are puddles, with her carpets, sofas and television chucked out on to the communal green.
The sheer volume of furniture piled outside homes in Kendal is daunting for the council, which had planned to pick it up. But many residents objected as they think their belongings will have to be assessed by insurance inspectors before damaged goods can be taken away. Others simply want their things left out to dry.
Many who visit the help centre don’t have insurance. “We just never thought the river would burst its banks. It got near in 2009, but we have never had anything like this,” said Deborah Nicholson.
Evita Zamberga, from across the river in Aynam Road, also has no insurance. Her basement flat was flooded and all her furnishings ruined. The water was head high at its worst.
“We were just going to church on Sunday morning when the water came up through the floor. I got my sister to come for the children, grabbed essential documents and a bundle of clothes, then joined them,” she said.
Sarmite, Zamberga’s sister, lives on higher ground and has housed her relatives since the flood. Evita was at the help centre to seek advice on rehousing. She had tried the private sector, but housing comes at a premium in this affluent town on the edge of the Lake District.
At the refuge centre more was food was arriving, much of it donated by local stores and supermarkets.
Chris Hogg, the harassed-looking mayor of Kendal, was in charge of proceedings, having been on duty for four days after struggling to get home from an official function on Saturday night.
“I ended up on my backside after slipping on the sodden ground near Kendal castle,” he said. “The response from people in the town has been amazing. We are so grateful for all the volunteers and goods that have been donated.”
Also on duty was the South Lakeland district council chairman, Peter Thornton. “We had a false alarm three weeks ago, so we had in effect a dry run. The initial response was just saving lives and keeping people safe. Now we are in recovery mode,” he said.
“We are having trouble with all the discarded household goods, with people worried about insurance claims, or wanting to leave them out to dry.
“But the big issue is housing. Thankfully many people have a wider family network, so a lot of victims are sofa-surfing. Money can solve anything, but we need the government to give us clarity on how much money we can spend and when.”
Hotels and caravan parks may be asked to house people temporarily during the tourism downtime in winter. “But there is a real danger that Kendal’s needs will be forgotten,” added Thornton.
