Owner of hotel hit by flash flooding praises staff

When hotel owner Luke Allen was running home from work along Scarborough's seafront on Friday, he thought nothing of the 10-minute downpour which soaked him.

But, little did he know the weather, brought by Storm Austen, was causing chaos at his business, the Weston Hotel on the town's South Cliff.

When the message got through to him, he and his wife, Steph, immediately attempted to drive back to work, battling through the flooded roads.

"All the streets were shut, because all the streets in town were flooded," Luke, 39, said.

"I got out [of the car] in the middle of town, ran to the hotel and it was like the rivers were all just running towards the Weston.

"None of the gullies and drains were taking in water, it was just like a river down every street."

After arriving at the hotel on foot, Luke said he had found staff in tears and guests "looking out in amazement at what happened", with some of their cars under water.

"I just flew downstairs, tried to do what I could, but when it's coming in like it was, you're just up against it," he said

"You can't do anything, you've got to reassure guests, make sure the staff are okay and just let time take its course."

Thanks to the Weston's Victorian architecture, the ground-floor customer-facing areas is raised above the level of the road.

But about 12in (30cm) of water had gathered in the basement, which is used for staff accommodation and the office.

Fortunately, the lino flooring slowed its descent into the cellar below, which houses the electrics and boiler.

Luke, an electrician by trade, worked with firefighters to pump out the water and make it safe, later assessing the damage and restoring electricity.

Meanwhile, co-owner Steph and the hotel manager arranged alternative hotels for some guests and booked them taxis.

Other guests said they did not mind staying, though Luke said that meant he had to carry out regular patrols overnight as the fire alarm system was not fully functional.

The following morning, with a gas engineer already booked for a check-up on the boilers, heating and hot water were restored.

"Amazingly, these boilers - they're about 20 years old - they fired up on the second hit," Luke said.

After 20 years of working in hospitality, Luke said the ordeal was "like nothing I've ever experienced - it was grim".

He and Steph issued a "rally call" to their team, seeking help to recover from the flood.

"Every member of staff, barring a few who were away, came in on their days off and just had a big clean," Luke says.

"It'd send you to tears how good the team were."

According to North Yorkshire Council the rainfall on Friday was equivalent to 3in (76mm) per hour at its peak, prompting more than 1,500 calls for assistance.

Corporate director for environment Karl Battersby said the drains and gullies in Scarborough were regularly inspected, but "there are occasions when rainfall is so intense that the volume of water exceeds the capacity of drainage systems".

He said: "The rainfall experienced in Scarborough on Friday was exceptional and resulted in a sudden flash flooding event, affecting a number of locations across the town. While the affected gullies will be inspected, the volume and intensity of the downpour placed significant pressure on drainage systems."

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