Flood-hit village gardens opened

Villagers are campaigning for flood defences

Worcestershire gardens which were devastated by flooding in July 2007 are being opened to the public after being restored to their former glory.

The Kempsey Garden Walkabout, in Church Street, is being held on Saturday and Sunday for a charge of £4.

Organisers said they hoped the event would raise the profile of their campaign for flood defences.

Some properties in the village are still unoccupied after being damaged in the floods.

More than 150 properties suffered some degree of flooding in July 2007 and almost half had sewage-contaminated river and brook water in living areas.

'Exhausted villagers'

It has taken two years for the gardens in the village to recover.

Organiser Dan Corns said: "The village brook normally runs quietly through the bottom of my garden.

"But in July 2007 it turned into a raging river. The water came up so fast that if a child had been in the garden they wouldn't have stood a chance.

"Some properties are still unoccupied and affected villagers are exhausted financially, physically and emotionally."

Environment Agency plans for a flood alleviation scheme in Kempsey did not receive funding from the regional flood defence committee in January.

Villagers are hoping they will be granted funding at the committee's next meeting in September.