Most of the dogs staying at Manchester Boarding Kennels on Willow Farm in Urmston have been rescued as a ‘major incident’ was declared across the region – but four were sadly not so lucky
Four dogs tragically lost their lives after severe floods struck Trafford on New Year’s Day. The pets were residing at Manchester Boarding Kennels on Willow Farm in Urmston when the region was hit by a deluge of rain.
While most of the dogs at the kennels were safely rescued, four small pups sadly didn’t survive after a ‘major incident’ was declared. Owners Naomi Ewen and Mike Sutherland expressed their devastation over the losses, but also said that they received ‘absolutely no warning’ about the catastrophic floods from the Environment Agency (EA).
They explained that a staff member checked on the dogs around 6am on Wednesday morning (January 1) and everything seemed ‘fine’. However, by 7am, the same staff member alerted them that the river’s banks were ‘getting high’ – and by 7:30, the situation had become critical.
“The banks burst and that’s when it went into freefall,” Mike told the Manchester Evening News. “We got in the car to come down to the kennels, but we couldn’t get across the bridge because the water was so deep.”
A local farmer offered assistance with his tractor, enabling the couple to reach the kennels and attempt a rescue. “We struggled to open the doors,” Mike continued. “I waded in and tried to get to the small dogs first. But they’re the ones that unfortunately didn’t make it.”
He revealed that one of the dogs that sadly died belonged to a private customer who he is close friends with, while the other three were rescue dogs housed there by a charity.
“It was devastating for me because the three dogs that are rescues I have looked after for a year,” Mike shared, before the couple praised the ‘fantastic’ support from their local community, who helped them rescue most of the 25 pups in their care.
“Some people have taken dogs into their homes, we’ve managed to get most of them in other kennels and they are all safe and well and customers have been spoken to,” Mike added. However, they were left questioning the handling of the rainfall and whether they could have received more warning about the flooding.
“There’s normally a weather alert, but we didn’t have one until four hours after the flood,” Naomi stated. “Between about 7am and quarter to eight the bridge was covered and we couldn’t get in.”
“We have plans in place in case anything happens – but we rely on weather warnings. This time it happened in 45 minutes without any warning.”
Mike, a former Navy man, admitted he had ‘never seen anything like’ the floods in Urmston. “We checked in at six o’clock, we checked in at 7 o’clock, and then that was it,” he said. “The floodgates opened. And it wasn’t just an inch.”
“I have no idea what happened. But we will be asking questions.”
The catastrophic floods led to a ‘major incident’ being declared in Greater Manchester, with over 1,300 people evacuated from homes and hotels across the region.
An Environment Agency spokesperson has commented on the relentless efforts of their teams, saying: “Environment Agency teams have been working around the clock over the New Year, operating flood defences, taking action to reduce the impact of flooding, issuing flood warnings and supporting those communities affected, including in Greater Manchester.”
They also highlighted the extensive investment in the nation’s flood defences: “More broadly, we are delivering a long-term funding programme of flood defences, investing over £1.25 billion this year to scale up national resilience through building new and improving existing flood defences.”
Regarding public information, the spokesperson stressed the importance of awareness: “We know providing the nation with the best available information on flood risk is vital to ensuring that policy makers, practitioners and communities are ready to adapt to flooding.”
A GoFundMe has been established to support the kennels. Donations can be made here.
