a book nearly two years in the making...

The stories of a village underwater

In November 2019 the small Yorkshire village of Fishlake gained national notoriety as the River Don, swollen by unprecedented rainfall, overtopped and flooded a huge swathe of land including over 170 homes and businesses.

As a way of thanking the people and agencies who helped them, as well as raising funds for communities worst affected, the people of Fishlake decided to document their experiences in the form of a book.

Created entirely by residents of varying ages and professions, with little or no experience or knowledge of producing a work of this magnitude, it is a measure of the resilience and tenacity of Fishlake folk that it was produced at all.

The book was created at the same time as those working on it navigated their way through the maze of insurance claims and juggled the often extensive repair work to their homes and business, as well as dealing with the impact of the first global pandemic in more than a century.

With over 85 stories and articles presented alongside 350 photos this book tells the full story of the flood: the personal experiences of the residents and businesses affected, the reasons for the flooding, the contributions of those who came to their aid and the royal and political figures who visited.

It is a truly fascinating exploration of what is an increasingly common symptom of climate change: FLOODING

Sales of the book have now ended

Below is the final statement from the Managing Team:

September 19th 2022 marks the twelve-month anniversary of the publication of the book, ‘Flood – the stories of a village underwater’ and at this time the Flood Book Managing Team would like to take this opportunity to provide a final update on the outcomes of the project.

It was back in early 2020 that a group of village residents came together and decided to create a book documenting the historical events of the night of November 8th, 2019, the night of the never to be forgotten, Fishlake flood.
The motivation to embark on such a project arose from a collective desire to achieve the following three objectives:

1: To recognise and thank all those who came to the aid and assistance of Fishlake residents during, and immediately following, the events of that night.

2. To create a historical record of the impact of the flood on the villagers.

3. To raise funds for communities worst affected by flooding.

We are very happy to say that we successfully managed to achieve all three of these objectives:

1. Firstly, copies of the book were gifted to the numerous individuals, businesses and organisations who came to the aid and assistance of Fishlake residents. In addition, several copies were also donated to libraries, including the British Library and the Danum Gallery, Library and Museum as well as to local schools.

Copies were also presented to local and national dignitaries, authorities, education establishments, organisations and even to members of the Royal Family.

2. Secondly, we are proud to say that we managed to create a visually stunning 200-page hardback, full-colour book, which accurately documents the impact that the terrible event had on so many of the village’s residents and allowed them to share their stories. A copy of the book was distributed to every household within the parish of Fishlake.

Because of the extensive work undertaken to produce this historical document, the impact of the 2019 Fishlake flood has now been permanently recorded for posterity.

3. And finally, many copies of the book were purchased by individuals throughout the country and even from as far afield as the United States of America.

In total, there were £6,000 worth of book sales which gave the book a profit of £4,500.
£3,000 of the profits were donated to the Community Foundation for Calderdale’s Watermark Fund, to be used to support communities in the Calderdale area who may be impacted by flooding in the future.

Just under £1,000 was donated to ‘The Fishlake United Charities’, with a request that the money should be donated for use by residents in the Bentley area which also flooded in November 2019.
The remaining profits (just over £600) were donated to South Yorkshire’s Community Foundation (which provided a grant to fund the Flood Book), with the request that the money be used to support other communities in South Yorkshire affected by flooding in the future.

The Managing Team would like to take this opportunity to personally thank everyone who played a part in the creation of the book, as well as all of those who very kindly purchased copies.

 

After living through this flood, it is great to read how people overcame and helped each other in this cleverly constructed book. It shows the whole experience from the night it happened to the months of clean up and repairs. I believe it also shows how much we appreciate the help given to us in both the short and long term.
Elizabeth Smith, resident
The book is absolutely fantastic, very professional in its design and binding etc, it’s certainly cheaper than a comparable book of the size and content; the photography is really breathtaking – and a stark reminder of how bad things were.
Scott Chesney, resident
A lovely historical record of the flood. Very informative and interesting. Beautiful quality book. Congratulations and thank you to all those who gave up their free time to produce it.

Lottie Deeney, resident

After living through this flood, it is great to read how people overcame and helped each other in this cleverly constructed book. It shows the whole experience from the night it happened to the months of clean up and repairs. I believe it also shows how much we appreciate the help given to us in both the short and long term.
Elizabeth Smith, resident
The book is absolutely fantastic, very professional in its design and binding etc, it’s certainly cheaper than a comparable book of the size and content; the photography is really breathtaking – and a stark reminder of how bad things were.
Scott Chesney, resident
A lovely historical record of the flood. Very informative and interesting. Beautiful quality book. Congratulations and thank you to all those who gave up their free time to produce it.

Lottie Deeney, resident

Created with the contributions of nearly 200 people,
the hardback book’s 200 full colour pages contain:

• Over 350 high quality photos, illustrations and diagrams
• An introduction to Fishlake and a little of its history
• The build-up to the flood
• The personal experiences of those affected
• The reasons why Fishlake flooded
• The stories of those both locally and nationally that helped
• The effect on the local businesses
• The political and royal visitors
• The aftermath and insurance issues
and finally…
• The more humorous experiences witnessed during the disaster

Learn about the origins of the book by listening to our podcast on YouTube

Members of the Flood Book Managing Team along with local dignitaries at the book launch event in Fishlake, September 2019

Members of the Flood Book Managing Team along with local dignitaries at the book launch event in Fishlake, September 2019