THIS WEEK IN 1980: Kitchen sink life for storm victims
A Portsmouth couple were forced to live and sleep in their tiny kitchen for an entire month because December storms, which tore the gable end and part of the roof off their home, had left the rest of the house uninhabitable.
However, after a chilly month, Leonard Harris, 61, and his wife Vera, 59, neared the end of their ordeal – they were offered a suitable council flat and could move in within a week.
Mr Harris said: ‘I cannot wait to sleep in a proper bed again... it is a great relief to know we are leaving soon.’
It was 4am on December 15 when the Harrises were woken by a tremendous crash which shook their house.
‘At first we thought the front of the whole house had gone,’ said Mr Harris.