Tuesday, June 6, 2000
Sandbags and perished furnishings/stock sit outside the local shops in the centre of Mytholmroyd and stories abound of the water going in at one side of buildings and out the other.
Rumour has it that the new flood elimination system recently installed in Mytholmroyd burnt out trying to cope with the sheer volume of water.
Janet Brooks at the newsagents in Mytholmroyd said, "By the time we got the taped telephone message that the flood was on red alert, we had already been up and dealing with the water for some time knowing that it was serious - St Michael's Church car park was flooded which hasn't happened before. We were warned we should evacuate the building but managed to stay put".
A wall came down on Calder Grove and residents were asked to evacuate the house and simply walked around Mytholmroyd having no other plans suggested to them until the water subsided, although it is believed that Calder High School and Burnley Road School were opened up to accommodate people.
The residents in the bungalows in the centre of Mytholmroyd had to evacuate their houses as the water reached the top of the wall adjoining their gardens.
JMD Hardware were victims this time - Jon Duerden said, "It went straight through the building. Last time there was a flood it didn't get above the top step".
The chemist shop has suffered a great deal of water damage to stock, carpets, furniture and fittings.
Other residents spoke of looking out in the small hours of Sunday morning to see Mytholmroyd centre heaving with people and activity.
A lot of questions are being asked as to why it was left so long before the residents were alerted.
In the meantime they are mopping up and getting on with it - again.
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