PAUL BRACCHI puts on his waders in the flooded village Boris Johnson has still not visited

There are only two ways to reach the end of George Street in the heart of the market town of Snaith, a gateway to East Yorkshire.

You can either borrow a canoe from the fire station around the corner (a mini-fleet of bright red lifeboats has been requisitioned), or put on waders and venture into the floodwaters that transformed this residential road in a toxic and polluted lake.

The first was not really an option; the inflatable structures are reserved for emergencies.

Hence the reason why I found myself on my knees … then my stomach … then (almost) my shoulders, walking delicately through the freezing depths and troubles of what used to be rue George, still three meters deep in some places. Im 5ft 6ish.

You may have seen photos of Snaith on TV in the wake of Storm Jorge, or similar images from other parts of the country. But it is only when you are here in my case, trying to avoid the possibility of diving into an open manhole, that the scale of the disaster becomes truly apparent.

Snaith is on the warpath.

The parish church has been transformed into a reception center providing hot meals, drinks and clothing to homeless families. A command center for firefighters, police, staff of the Environment Agency and the Red Cross has been set up next to the council office. An army of workers inspects pipelines, electric cables and telephone lines.

Officials with clipboards are everywhere.

Over 100 properties were evacuated from Snaith and neighboring East Cowick after the Aire River overflowed last week. Many of these residents stay in rented accommodation or are hosted by relatives and friends.

On George Street, nearly 30 red brick houses and bungalows will be uninhabitable for at least six months. Behind each sandbag, there is a human drama or a personal tragedy.

On my left I pass a semi with water to the ground floor window which has a SOLD sign outside; Not anymore. It belonged to a recently deceased woman. His daughter was to exchange contracts on the property of 150,000 people. The buyer withdrew a few days after the flood.

A few doors away is the submerged bungalow belonging to Catherine and Kevin Lorryman (photo above). Insurers will likely decide that it will be easier to demolish their 15-year-old house and rebuild it.

Among the evacuees, I learn, is a pregnant woman and her boyfriend who were offered a one-bedroom apartment 46 miles away by the council of Hull and the newlyweds forced to seek for help at the Priory Church Refuge Center, the place where they were married. a few weeks earlier.

This is the reality of life on George Street, for the moment: British stoicism and making the most of an appalling situation.

The eye is drawn to sagging greenhouses on the verge of collapse, drowned shrubs, overturned garden furniture and a small pink pedal car floating upside down on the grubby tide.

The only noise in this strangely silent section of George Street (Wednesday, anyway) comes from a double, two on the other side of the road leading to the Lorryman.

The owner returned briefly to probe the mess. The ground floor looked like a dark and dark cave. The smell was putrefying.

Road and bridge closures virtually destroyed Snaith and East Cowick (combined population, just under 4,000).

The floods contributed to a feeling of abandonment deeply entrenched in the North in general, summed up by a local who accused Boris Johnson of being too busy celebrating the fact that he had engaged to have another baby to visit. The disaster also drew attention to the fact that, according to some estimates, up to one in ten houses over most of the past decade has been built in areas at risk of flood. However, the developers have already submitted plans for more than 800 homes in Snaith and East Cowick.

The requests coincide with the East Riding of Yorkshire, where 113mm of rain fell last month, 258% more than in February. In Snaith and East Cowick, culverts blocked under the railway led to a lake almost the size of Windermere across the countryside.

Widower Stuart Mellards of Gowdall Road was among the first to be affected. Her daughter Lisa Deakin, as well as her husband and brother, only had 20 minutes to put him in safety before his house was flooded. Mr. Mellard, 76, who needs oxygen to get around, lives with relatives in Hull. He is a victim twice.

In 2000, his property suffered minor damage due to the floods, so his insurance policy was not renewed. Its neighbors, however, have flood cover. Damage to Mr. Mellards' home will cost at least 25,000 and wipe out his life savings. Many livelihoods have been destroyed, said 51-year-old Deakin.

Jonathan Parris, who runs a roadside auto repair business, is in the same situation. The flood destroyed tens of thousands of pounds of engineering equipment and, more than a week later, his garage is still under 5 feet of water. Mr. Parris, 46, is currently fighting to save his uninsured business. I am devastated, he said.

As Mr. Parris faced his ordeal, Kevin and Catherine Lorrymans' bungalow was constantly submerged on George Street. The thrust finally reached No. 53 a few hundred meters down the road. Debris was piled up outside, including ruined carpets and a doormat, draped over soggy sandbags, bearing the words: HOME SWEET HOME.

The same apocalyptic scenes took place in East Cowick, where one of the main residential roads in Back Lane looks like George Street. The houses here rely on oil boilers, not gas central heating, which has resulted in a kerosene leak in the floodwaters, aggravating the contamination.

Michael Bray and his wife had to vacate their home in Back Lane and move in with their daughter.

It was very upsetting. My wife was very emotional. There are many memories here, said Mr. Bray, 71, a retired security guard.

We have probably lost property of sentimental value and I have no idea the cost. But the community spirit was fantastic.

In Snaith, the community spirit of which he spoke was very present at the Priory Church. The benches were covered with donated clothing. Hot drinks and meals were served by countless volunteers.

A banner, from elementary school kids, reminds us that only we can do so little, together we can do so much.

Such resilience is perhaps the only positive news to come out of Yorkshire in recent weeks.

n Insurers are facing a bill in the region of 400 million for the thousands of homes and businesses destroyed by the floods caused by the storms Ciara, Dennis and Jorge.

Additional Reports: Mark Branagan