This is one of a collection of films made by members of the Selby Cine Club.  It shows archive film of the floods in Selby and the surrounding area in 1947, and extensive recent film of floods in Selby and the surrounding area around Christmas time 1978 including some of the behind the scenes work of those co-ordinating the emergency services.  The film is accompanied by a commentary.  The film begins showing the large snowfall at Christmas time 1978.  It then switches to show archive film...

This is one of a collection of films made by members of the Selby Cine Club.  It shows archive film of the floods in Selby and the surrounding area in 1947, and extensive recent film of floods in Selby and the surrounding area around Christmas time 1978 including some of the behind the scenes work of those co-ordinating the emergency services.  The film is accompanied by a commentary.  The film begins showing the large snowfall at Christmas time 1978.  It then switches to show archive film from the winter of 1947 when there was record snowfall.  It begins showing a wedding taken place normally, before showing the River Ouse having burst its banks flooding the whole of Selby, save the Abbey, which was built on slightly higher ground.  Buses struggle to drive down Scott Road.  We see flooded fields, a flooded Park Street, and other flooded areas:  the railway bridge over Ousegate, Millgate and the Ideal Flour yard. The narrator explains that after this the river banks were reinforced, but that these were not tested until the winter of 1978, to which the film now turns.  It is explained that that December the rainfall was double the average, and that over the 27/28th of December there was a large snowfall.  The River Ouse is shown extremely high.  The film is taken from the front of a high vehicle passing along snow covered country roads to Caywood, which has been completely cut off except for high vehicles.  It passes through a village, where one man shows how high the water has come up his house, explaining that the River Ouse is at its highest level so far that century.  The man struggles through his flooded garden to his pet rabbits. The film switches to the Civic Centre, where Selby District Council has set up a control room full of people making various phone calls.  They are being kept up to date on the road conditions.  More flooded fields are shown as well as the A123 flooded.  The Rider Arms pub is waterlogged, and the road to Hull is barely visible.  Volunteers are filling sandbags and being made bacon sandwiches and tea by women volunteers.  The men are joined by miners from Riccall Colliery, and the sandbags are loaded onto lorries.  There is a sign for “Water Row”, in Caywood, shown first covered in snow, and then again after it has melted, making a stream and flooding the properties.  Caywood Bridge is flooded and has had to be closed, as has the High Street.  Council vehicles are out with two-way radios.  Another country road is shown flooded, filmed from a tractor.  Courage Brewery in Tadcaster is seen surrounded by water, and Leyburn and Eastwick are reported as being cut off.  There are more blizzards, and residents are warned to take their furniture upstairs.  But the Christmas lights are shown lit up at night. It is New Year’s Eve in the Civic Centre, and the posts are manned waiting for high tide at 9 pm.  This comes and goes and the river banks hold, although the river has reached a record height.  It is reported that there are New Year celebrations, and on New Year’s Day there is still snow, but the water level is sinking, allowing people to inspect the damage.  Fields and roads are still flooded.  Carpets are taken to the village hall for drying by large gas fuelled heaters, which are also being used for drying out houses.  The Health Dept. has supplied disinfectant.  Eric Philips of Caywood Parish Council and Jack Wayfield, the Chief Executive, tour the village. Volunteers from the Women’s Royal Voluntary Service go out in their meals-on-wheels van supplying those who have lost gas and electricity supply with hot meals.  Life gradually comes back to normal, the flooding receding, as demonstrated by the toll of 4 pence being collected from motorists on the Selby Toll Bridge.