By evening, the couple could not leave the house without help because the water outside was so deep.
An off-duty firefighter, who had been told of the couple’s plight, went to their house to help get them to safety.
They praised firefighters for rescuing them, but they questioned the response of DfI staff to distress calls about the rapidly rising river level.
“There was absolutely nothing done until four o’clock yesterday evening, whenever it was too late,” Cunningham said.
The couple have been living in the house for just seven months, having bought the property in June 2025
“It was the beauty of buying a house by the river, and now the river is in our house,” Letherman said.