THE MALL DONATES TO FLOOD HIT VILLAGE
20th January 2016
The Mall Blackburn is urging people across Lancashire to dig deep and donate to the flooding victims in Whalley after staff witnessed the devastation first hand.
As news of the floods emerged, The Mall’s Marketing Assistant, Victoria Mawdsley, swiftly spoke to kind hearted Mall management to secure funds to buy and donate four dehumidifiers to the people of Whalley.
Victoria then personally delivered them to crisis relief organisers Kellie Hughes of Kellie Hughes Hair Studio, and Gillian Darbyshire, who is the President of the Whalley & District Lions Club on Boxing Day evening.
Kellie Hughes said: “We have worked non stop since Boxing Day to help our friends and neighbours that have been affected by these terrible floods.
“Whilst the rain has stopped and the flood waters have receded, there is still so much work to be done. I am opening the upper floor of my salon on Whalley Road as a place for people to come for help, as there are still people that don’t even have a bed for the night.
“My staff are also working round the clock to help on the ground, so we are doing everything we can, along with the Whalley and District Lions Club, to get everyone back where they belong – at home.
“The dehumidifiers donated by The Mall have been put to very good use and I would like to personally thank them for their much needed support.”
Victoria Mawdsley said: “Whilst it was absolutely awful to see the extent of the flooding, it was heart warming to see the local community pulling together.
“Kellie Hughes and Gillian Darbyshire have done such an amazing job at organising relief and they made sure that the dehumidifiers were delivered to people that needed them.
“I would urge anyone who has anything that can be donated to get in contact with Kellie or Gillian so that everyone can get back to normal as soon as possible.”
Gillian Darbyshire, who founded Whalley & District Lions Club just over a year ago, added: “We are part of the largest voluntary humanitarian organisation in the world and when our village was hit with this heart wrenching crisis we stepped into help co-ordinate and set up the village hall as our crisis centre.
“The response from businesses and the public has been overwhelming and we are still working hard to get everyone back into their homes as soon as possible.
“As the downstairs of properties have been very badly affected we are still looking for everything from white goods to carpets, sofas and even full kitchens, so if anyone can help I would urge them to get in touch.
