Street cleaner earns praise for flood rescue (From The Advertiser Series)

Street cleaner earns praise for flood rescue

11:54am Thursday 25th June 2009

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A STREET cleaner has been hailed a hero by council officials after plunging into flood water to rescue a family from their stricken car.

Non-swimmer Richard Greensmith leapt from a 10ft wall to reach the Dagnan family’s car which was stranded in St Andrew’s Road, Bishop Auckland, when torrential thunderstorms swept parts of the North-East on Monday of last week.

Paul Dagnan was trying to get two of his three children out of the car when Mr Greensmith, 43, waded into the rapidly rising torrent to carry them to safety.

The car had stalled in the deluge at the worst possible place, a sharp dip in the road near Bishop Auckland’s Territorial Army Centre, and quickly filled with a few feet of water.

Mr Dagnan said the outcome could have been different if Mr Greensmith had not appeared.

He had been driving Christopher, 14, Jonathan, 12, and fiveyear- old Elle home from school when Bishop Auckland was hit by the freak storm.

As he drove into what he thought was a puddle, the engine cut out and water poured into the car. He managed to get Christopher out of the back window then jumped to a grassy bank and called police.

Mr Dagnan said: “Jonathan and Elle climbed onto the boot and all the time the water was rising. I just thought ‘I’ve got to get the kids on to the bank’ then Richard turned up.

“I’d like to thank him because otherwise I don’t know what we’d have done. It could have been a whole lot different.”

Elle admitted she was scared.

She said: “I was crying because of the thunder. I was worried and hoping someone would get me off the car. I am happy now but I was scared at the time.”

Christopher said: I was a bit worried when the car started floating and dipping.”

Mr Greensmith, who is from Howden-le-Wear and has a 12- year-old son, said: “Anybody would have done the same.

“Within five minutes of the rescue, I looked back and the car had disappeared under the flood water.

“I didn’t think about it until I got back into my van, but I can’t swim, but it wouldn’t have stopped me.

Durham County Council Streetscene manager Jimmy Bennett described Mr Greensmith as a true hero and said he was proud of what he had done.

Police towed the Dagnans’ car out of the water and the children lost their textbooks but were given the next day off school to recover.

Woodhouse Close Leisure Complex had to be closed until last Thursday so the pump room could dry out after it was swamped by a metre of water.

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