A couple cashed in their retirement pot to buy their dream Monmouth property only to be ravaged by floods days later – now they have been told the small print means they are not covered for flooding
A fundraiser for the victims of Monmouth’s floods has now smashed £100,000 just hours after the target was raised as people tell of being left wiped out financially and ‘heartbroken’.
The public have been reacting to news devastated home owners and businesses have been left “heartbroken” after discovering their insurance was not valid for flooding. One couple had only opened their business eight days ago when “scary” flood water ravaged Bar 125 during Storm Claudia.
Politicians have called for an urgent review into the impact of Storm Claudia after “nightmare” flooding hit the town in the early hours of Saturday morning
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A major incident was declared as flood water up to 6ft ravaged the town centre. Dozens of people were rescued from their homes or evacuated in south-east Wales after the River Monnow burst its banks.
Andrea Sholl, 58 and husband Martin Sholl, 66, were on day eight of trading when disaster struck at Bar125. They had supposed to be retiring when the property in Monmouth came on the market.
Andrea explained her husband had just cashed in a lump sum from his pension to buy the property. She said: “It was the location, it is the best location in Monmouth. He’s always said if that place comes on the market and he kind of persuaded me a bit.”
She added: “People were saying it was ‘just what Monmouth needed.’ I do interior design as well and we’d made it a really beautiful place. Now I’m ripping off the wallpaper. It’s heartbreaking. The only word for it is devastation, it’s like it hasn’t happened to you.”
But, after the devastating flooding, she said: “Now I’m left thinking; ‘what the hell have we done?’ We had a lovely business in Usk doing so well. It was our last year and we were even thinking about retiring down to the coast.”
About their “nightmare night” she said: “It had been amazing that night, we’d hired out our function room the Monnow Suite for the first time, for a party of 52 cricketers. It was their award ceremony. We did them a hot buffet The night was beautiful. They all started leaving around 11pm.
“Then the trouble started when the water started coming through the back door around 12.30 to 1am. We are near the bridge and we could see quite a few blue lights and thought this is going to get us now. It was like a flood gate had been opened and wouldn’t stop. There was no stopping it, how high is this going to go, even though we managed to get up in the Monnow Suite…we’ve got no way out once up there.
“It was coming through the front and back door and could not get out through the garden room up to waist height in water it was surreal it was like a movie We moved our brand new velvet chairs upstairs to the suite and by the time we got down the garden room was up to waist height.
“It was travelling uphill. It was pretty scary and it happened so quickly and was uncontrollable, going at such a speed, we all ended up having to go up to the suite and stay there for the evening. My car is a write off too.
“In the kitchen there was 5ft of water. We’d just invested in brand new kitchens, freezers, fridges, toasty panini machines and fryers, they were all completely under water. We thought this can’t be happening. I was on the phone to the insurance company who told me we were not covered for floods, it’s in the small print. But that small print should be the large print!”
Andrea estimates their losses could be as much as £50,000, saying: “At the moment I’m tired of fighting.The only comforting thought is the support we have got. We know when we reopen the doors people will come.”
Efforts to clear up the town are ongoing, with electricity still switched off at most businesses as a precaution. Andrea added: “What has been a real comfort for us is when we put a plea out on Facebook and within ten minutes you’ve got people there with mops and brushes all happy to help.”
That community spirit was also seen in a JustGiving appeal, which has raised £104,000 in days. The Mayor of Monmouth set up the page, which reads: “I’m raising £100,000 to Monmouth Mayor’s fund to help Monmouth residents affected by the devastating flood
“I am overwhelmed by the generosity of friends far and wide THANKYOU. This fundraising page has been set up by the Mayor of Monmouth to raise money for residents affected by the devastating flooding in Monmouth.
“Thanks to the incredible generosity shown by so many, we have already exceeded our original £5,000 goal. Your support has been overwhelming, and it means we can move quickly to get help to the businesses, community groups and residents who have been affected by the devastating flood.
“Because the need is so great, we’re pushing for more. We have now set a new target of £100,000 so we can provide even greater support where it’s urgently needed. From the people of Monmouth: thank you. Your kindness, compassion and solidarity mean the world at this difficult time. “
Politicians called for an urgent review into the flooding at First Minister’s Questions in Wales on Tuesday. Darren Millar, leader of the Welsh Conservatives, called for a “rapid review” of the storm and its impact. He said: “The scenes, of course, in Monmouth were extraordinary, those were the ones that captured the headlines.
“The River Monnow overtopped the flood defences, it swept right through the centre of the town at a pace that nobody could have expected. Homes were inundated, elderly residents had to be evacuated in the middle of the night, and, of course, entire businesses were left destroyed with us being just weeks away from Christmas.”
“We’ve got to make sure that we learn lessons from these events quickly,” he added. “What assurances can you give that a rapid review will now be undertaken into what’s happened, and that speedy action will be taken to invest, as is necessary, to improve those flood defences and help this community, particularly in Monmouth, to get back on its feet, given that it was that hardest hit?”
First Minister Eluned Morgan said: “We can, and we do, try and prepare for situations like this, but when you get five inches of rain in five hours you get a situation that was much worse in Monmouthshire than even the storms of Bert and Dennis. So, we didn’t see that absolute inundation and the impact it would have, but there was as much preparation as could have been possible.
“Everybody gave all the warnings in advance, and I’d like to put on record my thanks to the emergency services for their sterling work in relation to this, but also to the communities, who’ve absolutely come together, who are working together, and making sure that they are responding.”
“We review after every event,” she added. “Every single time, there is a group that comes together, that assesses: ‘What did we do? Could it be done better?’ And it’s always used and always improved for the next one that comes along.”
To donate to the fundraiser for those impacted by the flooding in Monmouth, click here.
