Guildford Boiler Room Helps Flood Victims - 3 Aug 2007

"We spent a lot of the time working alongside fire crews as they struggled to over come and inundation of 999 calls," writes Dave Slinn, one of the Guildford Boiler Room team who headed across to Tewkesbury last week to help those suffering from flood-damage.

"A quick call to a friend of mine from Kent made for a small 2 man crew. We packed the Land Rover with gear and were able to get a free water pump from the local HSS hire shop, who were incredible and more than happy to help.  After a breakfast on the road we then set to task of wondering and praying where to go.  As we drove into the area we prayed about where we should head, and both agreed that Tewksbury would be a good start!  As we arrived we were very conscious that our offer to help could be taken the wrong way and so ask that God would really direct us to the place he wanted us to be.  After all, it was never just about helping, but about wanting to really bless people.  At this point we where on the outskirts of Tewksbury and a flooded road was ahead of us and we where unsure of what to do!
 
"We made the decision that we would press on, through the flood, into the centre of Tewksbury.  We crossed a road that was 3 foot deep in water and strewn with cars and lorries. Again we asked God where to go and, to cut a long story short, we ended up helping an elderly lady named Barbara.  She had lost her husband a year prior and was at a loss; her antique shop of 40 years had been flooded and the basement was 7 foot under water! While ripping out wet carpet and pumping out water, we were really able to share hope with Barbara.  After talking to her for a while she admitted that after her husband had died she had lost faith and that our arrival and subsequent help had breather new life into her. Of that we can only be thankful.

"The two days continued much the same as we pumped out, cleaned out and supported local residents up and down the high street. We were given food and a bed for the night and opportunity to pray for many people. We spent a lot of the time working alongside fire crews as the struggled to over come and inundation of 999 calls. Conversations would go something like this: ‘We’re wondering if we might help with your flooded basement?’, we'd say. ‘Oh, how much do you charge?’, they would respond.  ‘Nothing, we just want to help.’  After that, we would get a chance to explain why we were there.

"When we arrived, we found the water in the flooded basements to be unseasonably warm.  After pumping one such basement, we found the fuse box revealed after being submerged under 4 feet of water!  We also learned that the power was still on in that house!  We nervously continued but found time to ask someone from the electrical board if we were about to be fried!  He said that in most cases the power will stay on and is perfectly safe.  You could swim right past the fuses and be fine.  In fact, it was much like swimming in your kettle! What he did say was that like a kettle it will, if left long enough, boil the water; how ever much there is. One of the basements we did was like a warm bath!
 
"We left feeling like we had been lead all the while by the spirit but painfully aware that there was much suffering and pain to endure. There were stories about looting, stealing water and even infecting water supplies but we where blessed with a chance to chat to Sky News about how we had ended up there. It was great to be able to offer some positive news."
 
Please do pray for this town. Most of the shops, which are peoples' livelihood, will be out of action for 3 to 6 months.  They are with out power after having to have it switched off even if it was working.  There is still no running water and the town is in chaos.  It  really is difficult to get your head around how much water there is.  At one point when we were driving through water that was over the bonnet of the Land Rover, we saw that one of the measuring sticks showed it was over 16 foot underwater!  Even so, we saw God in the mix and are thankful for that.

Please do keep praying for the UK as it recovers from extremely severe flooding.

This article was originally featured on the 24-7 Prayer UK website.