Ryan Wesley, 31, told his grandparents to sit inside the digger’s bucket after helping them escape through a bedroom window of their bungalow in Billingborough, Lincolnshire
A hero farmer managed to rescue his grandparents from their flooded home by driving them away them to safety in his tractor.
Ryan Wesley, 31, told his grandparents, aged in their 80s, to sit inside the digger’s bucket after helping them escape through a bedroom window of their bungalow in Billingborough, Lincolnshire, on Monday. Joined by his dad Dean, 56, the good Samaritan even drove a pregnant woman to safety and began rescuing more elderly people in the area before the water became too deep for his digger to operate.
It comes after a major incident was declared by the Lincolnshire Resilience Forum (LRF) after streets became submerged in water, leaving scores of properties around greater Lincolnshire flooded. After finding out his grandparents home was also surrounded, quick-thinking Ryan drove his digger through the floodwater to help them.
He told the BBC that once he and Dean arrived at the bungalow, the water began to flow through the doors. Dean said: “The water was rising that rapidly, it was obvious that we had to get them out.”
The couple were able to climb out of the bedroom window and straight into the digger’s bucket, where they stayed whilst being driven through the badly flooded road. At that point, the water was around 3inches (7.5cm) high and at its peak, it was roughly 1ft (30cm) deep, Ryan said.
His grandfather, Haydn, 87, said he was “really pleased” to be rescued by Ryan and Dean, adding: “At the time, I wasn’t frightened because I’d got Ryan and Dean here and everything just went as clockwork.”
Ryan then returned to help others out of their homes, but had to stop as “the water got too deep, even for the digger”. He added: “That last trip, when you couldn’t see the front wheels of the digger, the water was over it, it was a bit hair-raising.”
At least 88 properties have been flooded internally in the UK, according to the Lincolnshire Resilience Forum. It said in addition to the current floods it was concerned about freezing temperatures across the county overnight. Superintendent Pat Coates, from Lincolnshire Police, said: “The south of the county is bearing the brunt of the problems and we’re seeing the biggest impact there.
“The concern overnight and in the coming days is the freezing weather. The forecast looks dry but we’re concerned about the standing water and anything that runs off the fields. Members of the public should not ignore road closures. We don’t want any more damage or people to be put at unnecessary risk.”
