'My son thought we were going to drown in floods'

A father who woke up to find "everything floating about" in his house said his young son "thought we were going to drown" in the New Year's Day floods.

Daniel Pownall said he, his partner, and their two children were woken at 03:00 GMT by neighbours screaming "we are going under".

The 39-year-old said his home was one of 12 properties on West End Road in Haydock, Merseyside, that were flooded after the River Sankey burst its banks.

Sustained torrential rain also resulted in widespread and severe flooding across large parts of Cheshire, Lancashire and Greater Manchester.

Mr Pownall told BBC Radio Merseyside: "Just looking at the devastation downstairs, from your microwave to your fridges floating in the front room, there was nothing we could do.

"Everyone got in our bed, all the kids, it was like a scene from the Titanic.

"We had to sit and wait until it [the water] went down. As it went down, that's when we started to see all the devastation, and the water was so cold you couldn't even put your feet in.

"My youngest boy was devastated - he thought we were going to drown."

Only the Christmas tree was left standing in his living room, said Mr Pownall.

The children's destroyed presents were still lying underneath the tree, he added.

Mr Pownall said insurance companies were assessing the damage while his children went to stay with his parents.

He said the council had arranged accommodation for his family in a nearby hotel until further notice.

Nearby donation centres have been set up in the community to help those affected.

A local church has received food and other donations.

Neil Fairhurst, secretary at Christ Church Haydock URC, said for the flooding to happen at "a period of rest and peace" was very sad but added that he was delighted that the community had stepped up to help.

He said residents were in need of used towels and mops for the clean-up operation.

Mr Pownall said he "can't thank everyone enough for all the donations" and added that "so many people have come down bringing food, it is unreal".

St Helens council leader Anthony Burns said it was "one of the worst floods we have had" in the Great Sankey and St Helens area.

He said there it was too early to say when residents could return to their homes, since insurance companies needed to carry out investigations and assess the damage.

Burns said the council would fully investigate the cause of the flooding, and work with other organisations.

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