While most of Britain spent the festive season snuggled up in the warmth of their homes with their loved ones, there were people who were left homeless and shattered due to the flood which occurred in Cumbria, as well as other parts of Northern England. As persistent rain continued to shower, there were reports of floods in Manchester and Leeds city centre as well.
Reports have emerged that while the Department for International Development spent £61 million on the affected floods in the recent weeks in Britain, the department has spent over £100 million providing aid to oversea countries that were hit with devastations.
The highest aid was given to the Philippines alone, with £77 million given to help it recover from typhoon Haiyan. Bangladesh received £7 million, while Pakistan was given £5.7 million for devastations caused by monsoons.
Labour MP Simon Danczuk criticised the figures. He said, “Why do we spend money in Bangladesh when it needs spending in Great Britain? What we need to do is to sort out the problems occurring here and not focus so much on developing countries. That has to be our priority.”
Presently, The Government invests up to £1 billion annually providing aid to poor nations to help them during devastations, and this figure is likely to increase to £1.7 billion per year by 2020.
Mandy Lord (53), was trapped in her home due to the flood, and she described the situation as being in “Noah's ark”. She said, “We had sandbags and floodboards around the house but it still got in through the floorboards. We managed to save all our animals and one of our neighbour's cats who had got trapped.”
It is said that about 100 soldiers from 2nd Battalion, Duke of Lancaster's Regiment, were called in to help the fire fighters and police team to help search for those worst-affected by the flood in Whalley. Commanding officer of 2nd Battalion, Lt-Col Hamish Cormack stated, “It's a dynamic situation. The water levels are still rising so it's very much a case of 'wait and see; and plan for the worst case.”
It is said that the Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service had suggested that an estimated 500 to 600 homes could need to be evacuated. Many people even risked their own lives in order to ensure the safety of their elderly neighbours.
Although the devastation has left many aghast, every cloud has a silver lining. Lucy Emmott and Pete Dickson refused to be beaten by the torrential weather and went along with their initial plans of tying the knot, even if it meant sporting wellington boots wither their wedding attire.
