A Cumbrian shopper has told of the terrifying moment her umbrella blew inside out as Storm Bert wreaked havoc across the county.
Donna Hargreaves’ ordeal began on Saturday afternoon, just as the storm was reaching its peak with torrential rain and winds in excess of 400 miles an hour in places.
The 32-year-old dental nurse, from Upperby, had just visited the Carlisle branch of Primark and was on her way to Boots on English Street.
“I’d just reached Lakeland Leather when it started to rain, so I paused to open my brolly,” she said.
“The next thing I know it’s been blown inside out by a huge gust of wind. It was terrifying. I thought I was going to die, or worse.”
Today Donna paid tribute to a brave passer-by who rushed to her aid.
“This man just appeared and fixed my umbrella and I was able to carry on. Without him I have no idea what I would have done. Whoever he is, I’d want to thank him for saving my life.”
An Amber Umbrella warning was issued late on Saturday and is still in place in exposed upland areas of the county.
And emergency services have warned people with umbrellas to be careful when opening them in high winds.
Doug Goodfellow, of Keswick Mountain Rescue team, said: “Umbrellas are designed to provide shelter from the rain, but their design means that in extreme wind events they can be blown inside out.
“Our message is simple: take extra care opening umbrellas whenever there’s a storm, and certainly don’t try to open them on top of mountains.”
Meanwhile the search is still on today for a balloonist from Manchester, last seen taking off from a field near Loweswater on Sunday morning.
Comments