A DEVASTATED couple have been left homeless after their home was ravaged by severe flooding which caused thousands of pounds worth of damage.

Kay and Martin Fletcher had only lived in historic Well Cottage, off Brownlow Road, for 10 months when it was hit by what firecrews described as the worst flooding they had ever seen.

Water up to knee height gushed into the couple's 18th century home after heavy rain caused a blocked culvert to overflow with water in the very early hours of Tuesday morning.

Mrs Fletcher, aged 46, was stranded upstairs following the flooding, while her husband, 47, braved the waters to try and save anything left untouched by the water. She said: "It was like a river coming in. Martin is devastated, we both are. I'm not sure if it's hit me yet to be honest, I'm holding my own and holding it in for Martin.

"We are effectively homeless. We can't live here, the electrics and water don't work, we have no kitchen, it's uninhabitable. The water got in the lounge, dining room, kitchen and garage. There's thousands of pounds worth of damage.

"We've spent months refurbishing it. There was all new furniture, windows, the floors were polished and the kitchen was the last room to be done. We were meant to have it finished by November."

The water has affected the structure and electrics in the property and insurers have told the couple it could take up to six to 12 months to make it liveable once again. In the meantime they are living in a hotel and relying on the generosity of neighbours and friends for support.

The couple were woken by the sound of rushing water just before 2am on Wednesday morning and went downstairs to discover the floods seeping in through the walls.

Firecrews were called to the property to help make it safe but due to the extent of the damage they could only fully clear the property of water on Thursday morning.

As well as damaging the cottage, the gathering water has written off Mr Fletcher's car and flooded down the road outside into the public highway and footpaths.

On Thursday water was continuing to pour out into the garden and the couple fear that their home is at further risk if there are more heavy rains soon.

However, Bolton Council have stated that the culvert lies under the property and, therefore, is the responsibility of the home owners, while the Fletcher's say the blockage is actually outside of their land under a public highway.

The dispute has angered Mr Fletcher who wants to settle the issue as soon as possible.

He said: "I've measured it out and it's not on our land. The issue is, why has this happened? Who's going to fix it and why is everyone washing their hands of it?"

Bolton Council were contacted for a comment.