Householder who sold cottage was supposed to be moving out when it was hit by the floods

DAVE Harris had sold his cottage and was preparing to move out.

But yesterday, when he was meant to be packing boxes and loading up vans, Dave was, instead, battling floodwater pouring into the property in Repton Road, Willington.

Having sold the home, the 66-year-old was set to make the big move today.

But, after heavy rain soaked Derbyshire once again on Sunday night, he spent most of yesterday with buckets in his hands, trying desperately to keep the house from being ruined.

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He said: "The people who are moving in have just bought this place and now its flooded. We are meant to be moving today but who knows what's going on.

"We had heard that the rain was going to fall and so we have been up all night. We watched the brook nearby start to rise and it just kept coming. At about 2am the water reached the house.

"It poured in, there's not much we can do. Luckily, because we are moving, most things are packed into boxes. We moved as much as we could upstairs. But it's come in all through the downstairs and soaked all the carpets. We have managed to save most other things."

His home was one of the worst-hit by the flooding in the village, after the River Dove swelled, burst its banks, and flowed into nearby fields, parks and farms throughout South Derbyshire and East Staffordshire.

Repton Road itself was closed off by police throughout the day, with several feet of water making it impassable. It meant reaching Repton was difficult all day.

Meanwhile, in Derby, Penny Oldham and her partner Peter Holland-Lloyd were still coming to terms with their back garden falling away in a landslide. (pictured right)

The pair woke up on Sunday morning to find the bottom of the garden in Darley Abbey had collapsed.

The Otter Street house backs on to a jitty running along the top of Darley Park. The jitty had to be closed.

Penny said: "It's still falling away now. It's moving slowly but the soil is still so wet that it just keeps moving.

"If there's any more rain, I'm really worried about what it will mean for the garden."

The couple's insurance company will pay for the damage to be repaired, but it will take a major operation to restore it to its former glory.

Penny said: "No one is coming out to look at the damage until Thursday and we're really worried about the safety of it.

"The wall which was there was 200 years old and it collapsed from the bottom, giving way under the sheer amount of water that was there. We've had to move all the furniture from the end of the garden because we're worried even more of it will fall."

Penny and Peter moved into the house last August and spent a lot of time getting the house and garden just right.

Penny said: "The garden was a tip. We spent lots of time doing it up.

"We had bedding plants and vegetables, it was our own little pride and joy. It's so horrible watching something that you've created fall away.

"Your house and garden is your own little part of the world that's supposed to be safe. We're just so worried about the amount of rain still to come."

Markeaton Park was still flooded yesterday, but some of the water had subsided since the weekend.

But David Gormley, owner of the Markeaton Garden Centre, said the waters had left their mark. He said: "It's all gone now and hopefully it won't be back. I've never known anything like it.

"Fortunately none of it came inside to do any proper damage but it was looking a bit scary for a while. We weren't sure what we were going to do if it came any higher."

Animals have also been affected by the flooding, with RSPCA officers rescuing four horses trapped in a field in South Derbyshire and poultry retrieved from a house in Shardlow.