Storm Babet horror as devastated son finds his mum 'floating in water' at home
Storm Babet’s ninth victim was said to be a housebound grandmother who tragically died as she tried to flee her flooded home.
Maureen Gilbert, 83, was found dead by her son and grandson yesterday after they became worried when her street in Chesterfield, Derbyshire, flooded. The pensioner had lived on the street all her life - but it wasn’t the first time her home was ravaged by floods as it had been hit in 2007, heartbroken family said.
Paul Gilbert, Maureen's son, described the moment he found out his mother was in serious danger when she phone him on Friday afternoon to say there was "water coming in the house". By the time he reached the property seven hours later it had "it was already flooded way too much" and the "water was nearly up to basically my eyes".
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He had phoned emergency services but they were unable to get into the property due to the level of water, so planned to return the next morning. "I was hoping she'd got upstairs and everything was alright and that we'd see her the next morning." But when he returned himself at 9:30 Saturday morning, he "came to the window, forced it open, and found my mother floating in the water", he recalled according to Sky News.
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The flooding caused serious damage to the late Maureen's property (Lee McLean / SWNS)Her neighbours described the flooding as "like something out of a film", with devastating pictures showing the destruction caused to the inside of her phone. 53-year-old neighbour Lisa Thompson described the moment she saw Mr Gilbert: "He looked he'd been shot. I gave him a hug, but what do you say to someone at a time like this? It's just heartbreaking. She was so lovely and down to earth. I'd known her since I moved in in 2006.
"When she could walk, she walked into town with her friend, but in recent years she lived downstairs and had carers going in. She phoned her son to say it was coming up to her waist, so she knew it was coming."
Maureen Gilbert died when trying to flee rising water levels (Courtesy Gilbert family / SWNS)Mr Gilbert had installed flood defences, but in spite of this, water could not be stopped when the nearby river burst its bank during Storm Babet. After making landfall in midweek, the second name storm of the season proceeded to wreak havoc across much of the UK. The storm brought down over six inches of rain in some places, over the course of 36 hours.
It is believed that the water on the pensioner’s street was chest height at its peak. Sadly, the pensioner is the ninth person to die. A couple died after their car plunged off a bridge, in dire conditions, and others were swept away by fast running flood water and one man died when a tree fell on his van.
Sandbags had been placed at Maureen's door to try and avoid severe flooding (Lee McLean / SWNS)Mr Gilbert said he is "very angry" following his mother's tragic passing. "I don't think there's enough being done with flood defences. People get forgotten down here - nobody got it as bad as we did in 2007 and now this year."
"I thought if the flood defence worked, she was safe," he added. "For me to have to come and find her myself was upsetting. I can't put it into words what it means at the moment."
Maureen, who neighbours said had barely left her home since the pandemic, lived downstairs in the property as she wasn’t able to use stairs. It’s thought she required four visits a day from carers. Writing on a fundraising page, her daughter-in-law Kaye said: "After a sleepless night, my husband and son found my 83 year old, housebound, mother-in-law, had passed away. She had unfortunately been unable to escape upstairs at the speed the water levels were rising.
(PA)"Not only do we have an uninsured house as the excess for flood damage was over £10,000 to clean and restore but a funeral to pay for all whilst grieving. She lived on the street all her life, rebuilding after the 2007 flood was hard for us and her but this is just devastating. We now only have memories as everything else is gone.
"My husband put his mothers flood defences up to his chest in the doorways and made preparations to secure the house as he has done many times during such weather warnings.
"However, when the river burst, the water just came pouring over at rapid speed and the defences did very little. The waters were much higher than the 2007 flood and came with a faster flow and pressure which resulted in my husband being stopped from trying to enter the property to check on his mum."
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Heartbroken Paul has been back to the mid-terraced house today to try to salvage any sodden belongings from the property. Pictures from inside the house show precious mementos dotted about the living room, including a photo from her wedding day with late husband Jack.
A heartbroken friend today said of Maureen: "She was such a character, she was a massive football fan, she was a big Liverpool fan and followed Chesterfield too. I'm devastated, it's just heartbreaking it could have been allowed to happen. I think questions need to be asked. Surely there should be a central database of housebound residents so they can be made a priority for help?"
The scene shared by the heartbroken family on their fundraiser (Gofundme)Derbyshire Police said in a statement released this morning: "An investigation has been launched after the body of a woman was found at a property in Chesterfield. Derbyshire Constabulary were called just after 10.35am on Saturday 21 October to the sudden death of a woman in Tapton Terrace, Chesterfield Officers, along with colleagues from Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service and from East Midlands Ambulance Service, arrived at the property and found a woman, aged in her 80s, inside the flat. Investigations are continuing into the cause and circumstances surrounding her death."
To visit to the family's fundraising page click here.
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