Community rallies to help flooded pub

The Windmill Inn, in Littleworth Lane, Partridge Green, was evacuated on Sunday (January 3) after heavy rain battered the village.

Firefighters were called to the property at around 1pm and spent several hours draining the flood water.

Charlie New, landlord at Windmill Inn, said he believed the problem was caused by a build up of water on a field near the back of the pub.

He said the drain in back garden of the pub was also slightly covered and couldn’t cope with the amount of water entering from the field.

He said: “The water started coming in at 12pm. By 12.30pm it was up to a couple of feet.

“There were people sat down to eat and they had to be moved. We had a lot of people in here at the time and we had to cancel a lot of reservations.

“Even with all their (Fire Service’s) equipment it was still struggling to keep up with it.

“They were amazing. They were a really good team and they couldn’t have been more helpful.”

Two pumps were used by fire crews to remove the water and the building was cleared by 3pm.

“It doesn’t look as bad in the pub as we thought it would look. There is a bit of a mud patch in the garden,” Charlie continued.

“It was a bit of a pain. We missed out on quite a lot of business but these things happen.”

He added firefighters put in new safety measures to stop the building from flooding again.

As well as the fire crews the pub also got a helping hand from a few of its locals.

Around 15 people came to clean up the mess and help the pub re-open for business.

Charlie said: “The locals were all in here sweeping and helping to clean up. There is a lot of community spirit in the village.

“Everyone worked together to make things easier. It is good to see the community coming together and helping out.”

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