Almost lost the Vette to the floods in the UK!
07-22-2007, 03:30 AM
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Staging Lane
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Almost lost the Vette to the floods in the UK! I have just come back from my holiday in Spain's Costa Del Sol on Friday 20th July. It was wall to wall sunshine in Spain and I had a great week away.
I had used the Vette as it was just My wife and I on holiday as my 2 kids and to old to come with us now (18 & 22).
I was flying from Nottinghams East midlands airport which is about 100 miles form where I live. I used the Vette to get us to the airport and back as the kids needed the the other 2 small cars to get to work. When we landed at 7pm we could see how wet it was everywhere floods in the fields etc. Turns out it had been raining for about 10 hours!
Mostly in the Midlands ared of the UK and a lot of rivers had burst there banks and most of the towns drainage systems were overwhelmed with 1 months rain falling in 1 day!
I had the journey from hell getting back down through the Midlands to Swindon which is on the M4 Motorway between London and Bristol.
As I did not know about the floods until I started driving home as there was no warning at the airport! I started my journey home. I went down the M1 motorway from Junction 23a to junction 18 without too much trouble apart form a few blocks of stopped traffic.
When I started the across country part of my trip down towards Daventy and Banbury things started to go pretty scary soon on as it was now dark and there were puddles up to the height of the Kurbs 4" and in some place 6" to 12"s deep.
I went through about 5 long puddles 4 to 6 inches deepand had to go to the other side of the road to find the sahllowest part. I had to drive at 40mph on roads I would normally be doing 60 mph on as I had to look out for the flooded areas!
I had gone through 1 puddle where the was 2 abandoned cars on the other side of one and I had to drive around them! I was looking at the height of the water and thinking well it's only 4 to 6 inches the car should be fine if I crawl through just above idle.
I had only gone about 20 miles on these country roads and I had another 40 miles of them to get home! So I decided I had to get back on one of the motorways. I came towards Banbury where I new the M40 to Oxford went near and decided I would detour on to that.
I got to the edge of Banbury and the floods were horendous! near the north of the town the road was flood for a 200 yards again up to the Kurbs and higher. It was 1 car at a time as the only route through was on the wrong side of the road! I watched other cars making it across form the other direction. Then it was my turn I carefully negoited my way across!
There was a few times I looked at the puddles and thought maybe I shoud turn back and try and find somewhere to stay the night! Some people had to spend the night trapped on the M5 which is another route I could have taken! But thank goodness I didn't.
My wife was in tears as we we fording some of these floods and thank gooness the roads I choose from then on we fine. I went down the M40 to Oxford then down the A34 to Newbury and joinded the M4 and went west to Swindon without further problems until I hit my home town.
Here things were easier as they had closed the flooded roads and stopped any more people going throught the floods. Where as all the other flooded towns roads I had gone through in the midlands had no closed roads or flood signs Nothing! Never saw a policeman a fireman no one to warn me not to even attempt the route!
If the Vette had stopped in one of those flooded roads the water was up to the bottom of the doors and would have eventually seeped in and ruined the car! It would have been an insurance write off totalled!
A journey that would have normally took me 3 hours took 4 and 1/2 hours and I went a fare bit out of my way to stay on the motorways ( freeways)
I inspected the Vette and the only caualty was one on my fog light screens was washed out by the water as they are on a pressure fit in there! Tiny bit on damp on the passenger floor carpet that's it thank goodness.
Looking back on it if I new what I was going to drive through I would have spent the night in a Hotel by the airport and gone in day light the next day.
It was pretty scary and I have never seen the roads in the UK as bad as this in all my years of driving! Thank goodness the Vette never missed a beat through all that water and I still got 23 average mpg! what a car! Mind you I wished I would have been driving a big 4X4! instead at some points!
I must add my experience must pale in comparrioson with thousands of people in the Uk that have had there homes and businesses flooded out and lost just about everything. There are also thousands of cars that have been flooded behond repair!My heart goes out to them!
The Uk's weather has gone kinda screwey lately! It rained through most of May June and July. This time last Year we had a drought and a hosepipe ban all summer!
Cheers Andy
I had used the Vette as it was just My wife and I on holiday as my 2 kids and to old to come with us now (18 & 22).
I was flying from Nottinghams East midlands airport which is about 100 miles form where I live. I used the Vette to get us to the airport and back as the kids needed the the other 2 small cars to get to work. When we landed at 7pm we could see how wet it was everywhere floods in the fields etc. Turns out it had been raining for about 10 hours!
Mostly in the Midlands ared of the UK and a lot of rivers had burst there banks and most of the towns drainage systems were overwhelmed with 1 months rain falling in 1 day!
I had the journey from hell getting back down through the Midlands to Swindon which is on the M4 Motorway between London and Bristol.
As I did not know about the floods until I started driving home as there was no warning at the airport! I started my journey home. I went down the M1 motorway from Junction 23a to junction 18 without too much trouble apart form a few blocks of stopped traffic.
When I started the across country part of my trip down towards Daventy and Banbury things started to go pretty scary soon on as it was now dark and there were puddles up to the height of the Kurbs 4" and in some place 6" to 12"s deep.
I went through about 5 long puddles 4 to 6 inches deepand had to go to the other side of the road to find the sahllowest part. I had to drive at 40mph on roads I would normally be doing 60 mph on as I had to look out for the flooded areas!
I had gone through 1 puddle where the was 2 abandoned cars on the other side of one and I had to drive around them! I was looking at the height of the water and thinking well it's only 4 to 6 inches the car should be fine if I crawl through just above idle.
I had only gone about 20 miles on these country roads and I had another 40 miles of them to get home! So I decided I had to get back on one of the motorways. I came towards Banbury where I new the M40 to Oxford went near and decided I would detour on to that.
I got to the edge of Banbury and the floods were horendous! near the north of the town the road was flood for a 200 yards again up to the Kurbs and higher. It was 1 car at a time as the only route through was on the wrong side of the road! I watched other cars making it across form the other direction. Then it was my turn I carefully negoited my way across!
There was a few times I looked at the puddles and thought maybe I shoud turn back and try and find somewhere to stay the night! Some people had to spend the night trapped on the M5 which is another route I could have taken! But thank goodness I didn't.
My wife was in tears as we we fording some of these floods and thank gooness the roads I choose from then on we fine. I went down the M40 to Oxford then down the A34 to Newbury and joinded the M4 and went west to Swindon without further problems until I hit my home town.
Here things were easier as they had closed the flooded roads and stopped any more people going throught the floods. Where as all the other flooded towns roads I had gone through in the midlands had no closed roads or flood signs Nothing! Never saw a policeman a fireman no one to warn me not to even attempt the route!
If the Vette had stopped in one of those flooded roads the water was up to the bottom of the doors and would have eventually seeped in and ruined the car! It would have been an insurance write off totalled!
A journey that would have normally took me 3 hours took 4 and 1/2 hours and I went a fare bit out of my way to stay on the motorways ( freeways)
I inspected the Vette and the only caualty was one on my fog light screens was washed out by the water as they are on a pressure fit in there! Tiny bit on damp on the passenger floor carpet that's it thank goodness.
Looking back on it if I new what I was going to drive through I would have spent the night in a Hotel by the airport and gone in day light the next day.
It was pretty scary and I have never seen the roads in the UK as bad as this in all my years of driving! Thank goodness the Vette never missed a beat through all that water and I still got 23 average mpg! what a car! Mind you I wished I would have been driving a big 4X4! instead at some points!
I must add my experience must pale in comparrioson with thousands of people in the Uk that have had there homes and businesses flooded out and lost just about everything. There are also thousands of cars that have been flooded behond repair!My heart goes out to them!
The Uk's weather has gone kinda screwey lately! It rained through most of May June and July. This time last Year we had a drought and a hosepipe ban all summer!
Cheers Andy
Last edited by 97vetteman; 07-22-2007 at 04:08 AM.
07-22-2007, 01:51 PM
#3
Staging Lane
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This is the UK Police rushing to help people in the recent floods don't try this at home guys cause remember the Police are trained to drive at speed where as you and I are not! 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvdpYgX4f7Q
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvdpYgX4f7Q
Last edited by 97vetteman; 07-23-2007 at 03:58 AM.