Village pub 'rescues residents from flooding'

A village pub has said it rescued a number of residents whose homes were affected by flash flooding on Sunday evening.

Whitwell High Street on the Isle of Wight appeared to become a fast-flowing river following heavy rain, according to video posted online.

Ruby Monteath from The White Horse Inn, who was pictured on Facebook kayaking in the road, said she helped to rescue a number of residents by truck.

The Isle of Wight saw 35-40mm (about 1.5 inches) of rain on Sunday, leaving some roads impassable and vehicles stranded in water.

Monteath, whose mother is the pub's landlady, said the current in the road was too strong for her kayak and knocked her over when she tried to stand in it.

She said: "The water was up to my thighs. The locals didn't know how bad it was because they'd been in there most of the day."

She said half of the street lost electricity and some homes had water rising through the floorboards.

Residents, including some who were elderly, were taken by truck to the pub for free food and drink, she added.

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service said it received multiple calls about flooding from about 18:10 GMT, especially from the Newport and Shanklin areas.

It said firefighters were called to three vehicles that became stuck in deep water in Pondwell Hill, Nettlestone.

Two people were trapped in one of the vehicles and were rescued by crews, it added.

Homes in Carisbrooke were among those flooded on Sunday, according to Facebook posts on the Isle of Wight Community Information Group.

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