The chairman of Manx Utilities has apologised to Laxey residents after the floods which tore through the lower part of the village.

Dr Alex Allinson said he apologised for the damage, but also for the hurt and the fear people in the village now live with as a result of the flooding.

The Ramsey MHK’s apology came as villagers took the opportunity to put pressure on MHKs to repair the damage to their homes and prevent further flooding in future. The meeting, chaired by Captain of the Parish Stephen Carter, saw over 175 residents vent their anger and despair at the lack of action taken before last week’s flood.

Criticism ranged from the lack of action in previous years despite a succession of reports highlighting flood risk in the village and work carried out in the river in the days leading up to the flood.

Glen Road resident Richard Kneen told the meeting that he ’can’t believe the lack of action for many years’.

Since the flood, Mr Kneen has been checking the river banks, recording the amount of debris and conducting research into salmon migration which led to him saying that the work being done in the river to aid the migration of fish was ’unnecessary’.

He added that ’this is not only Laxey river, it’s all over the island’ and that government ’needs to listen to people who live by the rivers’.

Dr Allinson told residents: ’I’m really sorry with what happened on that day and the sequence of events. And the damage it caused to you and your families but also the fear it’s caused for the future.’

The controversial topic of the weir in the river which created a dam and worsened the flooding to Glen Road residents was also discussed at the meeting and Dr Allinson apologised for an interview he gave to Manx Radio the morning after the flood when he said that Manx National Heritage had objected to the removal of a weir.

Since then MNH has said it hadn’t been asked about the weir and had ’no power’ to object to its removal.

Dr Allinson apologised for that interview and said he spoke to the radio at the earliest opportunity following the floods and did so ’with the information available’.

Since the flooding Manx Utilities has demolished the weir.

Dr Allinson went on to outline the next steps including clearing river banks, the investigation into the flooding and the government working with insurers to make sure people can protect themselves financially against flooding in the future.

One woman who spoke during the meeting asked Dr Allinson: ’Why have you done nothing since 2015’?

’Why have you all listened to civil servants when the residents have told you what is going on?’

The woman told Dr Allinson that ’you’re one of the good guys’.

But she warned him and government that at the minute ’you’re running’.

Dr Allinson said he ’wanted to be honest rather than spin events’ and to ’take responsibility’.

He later told residents that ’we have lost your trust and we need to rebuild it’.