Tragedy almost struck a family in West Yorkshire after a father had to suddenly rescue his 11-month-old son from their flooded car.
Andre Randles, 22, was driving with baby Luca from Hebden Bridge to his father’s home in Todmorden to watch a football match on Saturday afternoon.
He was diverted away from his main route when he hit a dip and went “straight into a puddle of water”.
Mr Randles thought it was a shallow puddle that he could drive through but soon his car began to float.
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He called emergency services but soon “water started seeping in”.
“I thought I’m going to have to get out, I’m going to have to smash a window,” Mr Randles told Sky News.
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He wound down his and his son’s windows, and climbed out before rescuing his son.
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“The water was chest high, I held him up as high as I could to keep him out of the water.”
“It wasn’t raining so heavily, I’ve driven in much worse rain,” he added.
Mr Randles, a self-employed roofer who relies on the car for work, said he remained calm during the ordeal and was helped by the fact that Luca was asleep during the rescue.
Mr Randles’ partner Paige Newsome – who was not in the car at the time – said the incident was “really scary”.
“To think I could have actually lost them both – I don’t know how I would’ve lived,” she said.
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The road has been flooding for at least two decades, the couple said.
“What is it going to take for the council to sort it out? Does a fatal incident have to happen? It’s been going on for years,” Ms Newsome said.
The couple are worried about affording another car as well as Christmas celebrations.
But Mr Randles said: “I’m grateful that we got out safely and that we can spend his first birthday and Christmas as a family.”
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Around 300 flood warnings and alerts are in place in England, with another 100 in Wales and nine in Scotland, as heavy rain and thawing snow bring more disruption across the UK.
A major incident was declared by Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council in South Wales after homes and cars were submerged in water.
Storm Bert has brought more than 80% of November’s average monthly rainfall in less than 48 hours to some parts, the Met Office said.
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At least 100 properties have potentially been flooded in South Wales, with rest centres established for those affected.
