91-year-old woman recalls being stuck in King's Lynn cinema during the 1953 floods

A 91-year-old woman has shared her memories of being evacuated from a cinema during the 1953 floods disaster.

Phyllis Carter, known to many as Pat, now lives in Crimplesham and can still recall what happened on the day major flooding struck West Norfolk and much of the east coast 70 years ago.

Catastrophic floods caused by a tidal surge in the North Sea led to widespread flooding as Pat and her boyfriend David (who she later married and who sadly passed away in 2014) were inside the then Pilot Cinema, on John Kennedy Road in Lynn.

David was in the army at the time and had returned back home to Wretton on a two-day break when the couple decided to go and watch a film.

“An alert came up on the cinema screen saying we had to evacuate,” said Pat.

She recalled a few people being in the cinema at the time.

She added: “We all had to form a line and hold hands. You could see the water coming from up the stairs and we had to get out of the cinema through the back.”

She recalled walking through the back of a fishing yard, treading over cockle shells while it was pitch black.

“Luckily, we managed to get a bus back to Boughton, but then we had to walk two miles back to David’s house in Wretton. We had to hold onto each other because the weather was so rough.”

Pat waited until the next day to make her way back to her home in Fincham at the time.

“We didn’t realise how bad it was because there wasn’t the communication there is today.”

As part of David’s army service, he was sent to the Purfleet area to remove bags of sugar ruined by the floods.

“They had to be thrown in the sea,” said Pat.

She expressed her relief about making it to safety that day, after so many people lost their lives.

“There was nothing like that night. A lot of people died, they had nothing to make use of like what we have now.

“I was so grateful that we weren’t living on the coast at the time.”

Pat added: “There are still a few of us that can remember the floods, but not too many.”

Do you, or a family member remember what happened during the 1953 floods, perhaps you helped rescue somebody, or maybe your home was destroyed?

We'd love to hear your stories, get in touch by emailing newsdesk@lynnnews.co.uk.