Some would say we live in very strange times; I’m sure throughout history there have been similar mutterings.  There seems to have been very little reason to raise a smile or to celebrate (unless you are a Brexiteer of course). 

I am currently the chair of Monmouth Chamber of Commerce. I am also a partner in a small design practice which has just celebrated 50 years in uninterrupted trading, thanks to my business partner and its founder.  Monmouth is a small town, with a growing population of around 10,500; we are situated in a beautiful area of the country at the heart of the Wye Valley, and are surrounded by three rivers. Our town made the national news this week because of Storm Dennis. The town centre itself has been lucky over the years.  It had a history of flooding roughly every 20 years until a bund was built alongside the River Monnow in the late 1980s. We have seen record water levels over the past week; some housing estates were cut off but the town centre shops have remained largely unscathed. A number of homes were flooded, which is hugely traumatic for the people concerned.

We have had superb assistance from all the emergency services: South West Fire and Rescue, Gwent Police, Monmouthshire County Council and Natural Resources Wales, while Welsh Water were on the ground very early on keeping an eye on developments. Along with the extraordinary lengths these people have gone to, there are two things that stand out for me most. First is the community spirit that has sprung from this adversity - social media sites have been full of offers of help for people who have been affected.  The second is the outstanding contribution made by Welsh Water. 

Mr Peter Perry, managing director of Dwr Cymru (Welsh Water) has been in Monmouth overseeing the operation, which was made infinitely worse by one of the pumping stations being flooded and availability of drinking water being dramatically reduced. 

This simply spurred greater efforts, with teams working round the clock for days.  Bowsers were brought in to get water to as many areas as possible and packs of bottled water were delivered free to businesses and residents with great speed and a minimum of fuss. Mr Perry led from the front, posting regular update messages on social media.  He has met with many concerned residents and hasn’t shied away from the problem but has met the challenge head on - something of a rarity these days. It appears to me that other organisations, corporations and government could learn a lesson or two from how Dwr Cymru react in a crisis: if their business model was adopted by more people we would be a force to be reckoned with on the global stage.

We sometimes take for granted the emergency services and the people who turn out at times of crisis to assist, so I wanted to acknowledge their herculean efforts and for what it’s worth say a huge thank you. Because of these incredible people Monmouth, while being a little damp around the edges, is still open for business.

Ms. S. McCabe-Finlayson (Chair, Monmouth Chamber of Commerce)