'Severe trauma' of flood victims

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Flood victims in the worst-hit parts of the country are suffering severe mental health problems which is reaching a "crisis point", it has been claimed.

Paul Hendy, a specialist floods advisor to Hull City Council, says hundreds of people are suffering trauma-like symptoms six months on from the floods.

He said there had been at least one attempted suicide directly linked to stress brought on by the crisis.

Mr Hendy worked with communities in Carlisle following the 2005 floods.

'Falling apart'

The voluntary sector worker, who has been involved in disaster recovery work for five years, said he had seen similar mental health problems developing in Carlisle.

But, he said, in East Yorkshire, the effects were being felt much more quickly.

One woman took an overdose, she could no longer cope with what she was going through . . . the trouble is, she is not the only one Paul Hendy

He said: "It has got worse as Christmas has got closer. People are literally falling apart.

"We are now seeing real signs of stress and aggravation. It took a year for this to happen in Carlisle but here it has happened in six months."

Mr Hendy said he was currently dealing with 500 cases of flood victims in Hull and the East Riding.

Much of his role has become acting as an intermediary between flood victims, their insurance companies and loss adjustors.

He said: "Flooding impacts on people in a way very few other disaster do, because it is such a personal loss.

"People lose things they have saved all their lives, pictures of loved ones which can never be replaced.

"All they want to do is get back to normal but it's impossible."

'Christmas syndrome'

This, combined with the loss of neighbourly support, was compounding the problems for people, he said.

Those finding it particularly difficult to cope were the people who were already going through emotional turmoil such as marriage breakdown, family illness, or debt, before the disaster happened.

Another knock-on effect he had seen was "horrendous debt" being incurred by victims while they were displaced from their homes, Mr Hendy said.

Mr Hendy works as an intermediary between victims and insurers

"Insurance companies do not appreciate the additional costs", he said.

"Most are living on takeaway meals, they are having to take their washing to the launderette and are taking the children out in the evening because there is no space in the caravan to play.

"We found in Carlisle that may people got themselves into up to £20,000 of debt after the floods.

"The difference in Hull is that many people don't have the money to start with."

Many people in the area were falling victim to what Mr Hendy described as the "Christmas syndrome."

"We have identified a number of people as being very much at risk", he said.

"One woman, in her early 60s, took an overdose. She could no longer cope with what she was going through.

"The trouble is, she is not the only one. I wish she was an isolated case."

'Stability threatened'

Leslie Carrick-Smith, a chartered forensic psychologist from Chesterfield, said the symptoms brought on by an event such as flooding could accurately be described as "prolonged duress stress reaction".

He said: "People's homes are their private space, they are associated with families, belongings, possessions and stability.

"Anything that happens to uproot that is threatening that whole stability, so people are going to be disturbed and distressed.

"If a relocation is then forced on you, if your belongings are lost or damaged and then you are put into a much smaller space like a caravan, and your personal routines are disrupted . . . it is a recipe for a stressful situation.

"Christmas time is an emotive season anyway and it is a time when emotions can run high.

"If finances have been disrupted, if you can't decorate your house or put presents under the tree, if your cooking facilities are extremely limited, the whole thing becomes more and more stressful."