Sarah Reilly and her partner Pete had a quiet New Year's Eve, planning to open their new coffee shop at Barrowfield Dog Park in Urmston the next morning. Around 6:30 am on New Year's Day, they woke to rapidly rising water levels from unexpected flooding. Within 15 minutes, their business was submerged. They quickly acted to save the horses in their field. Next door, Sarah's business partner Laura Maher and her partner Kevin Connelly experienced the same frightening flood.
Kevin described the water rising in a sudden, unprecedented rush unlike any gradual flooding they had witnessed before. He emphasized that the water usually rises slowly, allowing them time to prepare and react, but this time it was like a tidal wave. They both expressed dissatisfaction with the Environment Agency's warning system, claiming a yellow weather warning was insufficient and that they received no notice of the severity of the flooding