Storm Babet: Maureen Gilbert, 83, died in flooded home - son found her body 'floating' in water
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A woman who died in floods caused by Storm Babet has been named - as her son described finding her body "floating in the water".
Maureen Gilbert, 83, died on Saturday (21 October) in her home in Chesterfield, Derbyshire after water from a burst riverbank flooded into the property and she found herself unable to escape.
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Hide AdHer son Paul told Sky News that he had spent hours putting up defences against flooding in the days prior, in the hope it would protect his mother, but she called him on Friday afternoon and said there was "water coming into the house".
It took Paul seven hours to reach the property because of the disruption caused by Storm Babet, but when he got there the water was "up to his eyes". Maureen lived on the ground floor because she was disabled, but Paul had been hoping she had managed to make it upstairs and that "everything would be alright".
Tragically however, when he forced his way into her home, he found his mother "floating in the water". He said: "For me to have to come and find her myself was very upsetting. I can't put it into words what it means at the moment."


Paul said that emergency services had been unable to enter the property on Friday due to the volume of water, and had planned to return the next morning.
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Hide AdHe also added that he was "very angry" at what had happened, arguing that people in Chesterfield had done "as much as they could" to prepare for Storm Babet - but that not enough protection was offered despite the area previously being badly affected by flooding.
"People get forgotten down here," he said. "Nobody got it as bad as we did in 2007, and now this year too."
Maureen is one of four people confirmed to have died as a result of Storm Babet, which brought immense rain and devastating flooding across parts of the UK. Among the victims is "beloved" wife, mother, and grandmother Wendy Taylor, 57, who died after being swept into a river in Scotland.
John Gillan, 56, was also confirmed to have tragically lost his life after a tree struck the van he was driving along the B9127 in Angus. Meanwhile, a search continues in Aberdeenshire after witnesses reported seeing a man trapped in a vehicle in floodwater.
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Hide AdDespite the worst of Storm Babet having passed, further "risk-to-life" warnings have been issued across the UK - with the Environment Agency saying flooding could continue until Tuesday (24 October).
There is particular concern for those in areas near major rivers, such as the River Idle in Nottinghamshire, with several residents being evacuated from their homes.
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