Gales bring floods, fallen trees, rescues and cancelled events (From Swindon Advertiser)

Gales bring floods, fallen trees, rescues and cancelled events

8:50am Saturday 24th November 2012 in News By Emma Dunn

THE howling winds and torrential rain which battered the town this week are set to continue over the next 24 hours.

Among the incidents reported are felled trees, flooded gardens, blocked roads and stranded motorists.

Residents in Harcourt Road, Ferndale, were shocked when a tree fell just metres from their homes at 7pm on Thursday.

Tessa Hewington, 16, said: “We had just finished dinner and we got a knock on the door from a guy who had got back to his car, which was parked on the road.

“He said he had heard the tree creaking and was knocking on doors telling everyone to move their cars because he thought it was going to come down.

“The cars were moved in time, but when it fell it was resting on our neighbour’s fence. If it was a foot taller it would have hit the house.”

Tessa said neighbours had previously asked the council to trim the trees.

A Swindon Council spokesman said: “The trees in Harcourt Road were inspected last year and we found no problems.

“If residents report potential tree defects to us we will carry out additional inspections, but we cannot legislate for high winds and trees can sometimes show no signs of disease or distress before they fall down.”

Meanwhile, the northbound carriageway of the A419 was down to one lane between Blunsdon and Cricklade yesterday morning due to flooding.

Castle Combe Circuit, near Chippenham, has cancelled its racing school driving experience day today due to flooding on the track.

Fire crews returned to Kennedy Drive in Eldene to pump out gardens on Thursday following a visit on Wednesday.

Since Thursday fire crews have rescued 11 people from vehicles stuck in flood water.

“This included two women whose car was stuck in 2ft of water between Somerford Keynes and Minety in the early hours of Friday.

A Met Office spokesman said the chaos is set to continue. “From 6am on Saturday until 6am on Sunday there will be 20 to 30mm of rain falling over the region,” he said.

“The winds are going to pick up as well with 60mph gusts.

People experiencing flooding should call 0800 232323 from a landline, or 01225 777234 from a mobile, or 999 in an emergency.

l Have you been affected? Contact reporter Emma Dunn on 01793 501797