People forced to leave street at risk of flooding say goodbye

People forced from their homes on a terrace at severe risk of flooding have spoken of their heartbreak as they met for one last time.

Rhondda Cynon Taf council agreed in February to spend £2.57m buying most of the homes on Clydach Terrace in Ynysybwl, which was badly affected by storms Dennis and Bert.

Last year, Natural Resources Wales said building a flood defence wall to protect the terrace from a nearby stream was "not economically viable".

Paul Thomas, 66, has lived on the street for 46 years and said he felt like his memories were "being taken away" as he boxed up his life and prepared to move.

Thomas said he was lucky to be alive after being caught in flooding during Storm Dennis in 2020.

"A wave came up the street and knocked me off the step, I was carried across the road, over to the wall, but I was able to kick off and get back," he said.

The council said a “unique set of circumstances at Clydach Terrace” led to the intervention, after a report on the purchase suggested climate change would make flooding "a more frequent occurrence".

Many of the residents who gathered at a community centre on Sunday said most of the row of houses would be empty by the end of the week.

There is no update on the timeline for what happens next, but the row is expected to be demolished.

One resident, Rebecca Chadwick, told the gathering the residents on the row of 16 houses would "remain friends for life", even though they were now "going their separate ways".

She said the group could now plan for a "safe and flood free future".

Some of the residents were born in the street, with generations brought up there, like Thomas’s family, whose children and grandchildren also live on Clydach Terrace.

There had been difficulties for some residents finding alternative housing in the area, he said, with house prices higher than the £150,000 he had received for his home.

He also had to spend £50,000 putting his house right after Storm Dennis in 2020, the first time the street was flooded.

But he said the negatives outweighed the positives, adding there was constant worry whenever a storm was forecast.

"We've got to go, we've got no choice," he said.

"We stay here and we can die. It's as simple as that."

Kevin Fender, 63, bought his house on Clydach Terrace four years ago and moved out last week, having found a house about a mile away.

“I didn’t expend to be moving at my time of life. You don’t realise how hard it is to do something like that.

"It’s life changing” he added.