Callow End home saved from flooding after Storm Franklin

Sam Underwood, 46, from Callow End has seen his house flooded four times since October 2019.

Deciding that enough is enough, Mr Underwood, who also designs instruments, decided to get a flood defence wall built last year.

And it has already paid off, keeping his house dry during recent flooding caused by a triad of storms.

He said: “I couldn’t be happier with the results. It was very stressful for this first flood as it’s hard to predict how much groundwater is going to appear inside the wall.

“I would encourage people who flood to explore the possibilities if they feel they might be able to do similar.

“We spent years working on resilience measures and that’s a good idea, but the wall has really been a huge improvement.

“It was awful to see so many people flood again. My heart goes out to them.”

BEFORE: Sam Underwood's home was flooded four times in less than three years. Pictured here in February 2020

Mr Underwood explained that he has two pumps that send any groundwater back over the wall.

He says that the lower one coped well with the flooding while the top one was barely used at all.

He added: “We are used to wading about for a few days and then having a couple or more weeks of clean up and dry out, so it was a huge relief to have the flood defence prevent that.”

AFTER: The wall installed outside Sam Underwood's home kept it from flooding after recent storms

The wall was installed by a local building firm and Mr Underwood believes it was worth every penny.

He said: “It’s a 100 linear metres of reinforced retaining wall, so it wasn’t cheap.

“Let’s just say it cost about 10 per cent of the value of the house and required some re-mortgaging.

“I’ve lived here 12 years. I expected to flood around every seven years on average but I’ve been flooded four times since October 2019 and it would’ve been five without the defence.”