Flooding: Mormon missionaries help clean-up after storm

Brendan Pricer and Ethan Farar are on a two-year mission with the Mormon church

Mormon missionaries from the United States have been helping clean-up efforts in Wales after the floods caused by Storm Dennis.

Brendan Pricer, from California, and Ethan Farar, from Arizona, helped a woman whose husband died after he had a heart attack during the flooding.

They said it was "humbling" to help such a "really strong woman".

Rhondda Cynon Taf council said more than 500 homes in the county had been damaged by flooding.

The council added it was continuing to monitor coal tips after a series of landslips during the recent storms and subsequent flooding.

It said it was monitoring seven sites, including the Tylorstown Upper Tip, which saw a "significant" slip.

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Groups of Mormons, or members of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints, have been helping the flooding relief effort in south Wales since the floods in mid-February.

Mr Pricer said the woman's house was one of the first doors they knocked on.

Hundreds of homes and cars were damaged during the storms in February

Mr Farar said: "There wasn't much that we could do, but any small thing she was very appreciative of.

"We've seen her many times since then and, honestly, every time we see her there's a smile on her face. I don't know how she's been able to get through it all, but she's a really strong woman.

"Her home was destroyed, she lost her husband, she'd pretty much lost all her possessions on the ground floor at least."

Mr Pricer said the pair were able to salvage some belongings, some containing memories of her husband, from the house.

"We were going through all this wreckage and she was like 'Are there any pictures? Just please give them to me'," he said.

"So we were digging through all this sewage and muck and she was just so happy for these pictures that we were able to get out of the rubble."