A couple facing Christmas in an Airbnb after losing everything to flooding for the second time in two years say they have "no home, and no hope".

Frances Spanner and Tony King have been left counting the cost yet again after sewage water gushed into their flat during heavy rain in Central Parade, Herne Bay, last month.

And with their home now uninhabitable due to damage and severe damp, the couple have been forced to abandon their plans just before Christmas - and face homelessness in the new year.

Frances said: “Rather than getting to watch our family and friends unwrap their presents on Christmas Day, we got to watch them bob up and down in sewage water in the middle of November.

“And now, our Christmas will be spent in an Airbnb trying to find somewhere to live beyond January 2, when Southern Water stop paying for our accommodation.

“And what makes it worse is that a lot of the gifts we give out are hand-made, so a lot of hard work and effort went into them just to chuck them away."

The couple estimate that a previous flood in August 2021, when the sewer network was overwhelmed by what was described as “once-in-50-year rainfall”, left them with a bill of more than £10,000.

But less than two years later, having seen it happen again, Frances and Tony are less than impressed with the prospect of being isolated from their family over Christmas.

Frances told KentOnline: “My mother’s just had major surgery up in Glasgow. We can’t go up there because we have three cats that are having to live in the flat while we bounce around from place to place.

“The hotels and Airbnbs don’t allow pets, so we have to go back at least twice a day to check on them.

“It’s so disheartening to go in and see the state it’s in. It doesn’t get any easier. There’s such a long road ahead before it is suitable to live in again.

“It’s so much more than just about losing material objects - it’s the strain it puts on our lives, our relationships, our mental well-being.”

Southern Water has offered £5,000 to its worst-affected customers to help with recovery as a "goodwill payment", but the firm says no compensation is due as the flooding was caused by severe rainfall.

However, having seen their repair bill rise to almost double that when they were in the same position last year, Frances and Tony say this isn’t adequate, and the company is failing to deal with the situation on a case-by-case basis.

They also say the landlord is having to go through their own insurance to cover the cost of the work needed to make the flat liveable again.

“Essentially, the whole place needs to be renovated and redecorated including replacing furniture and clothing,” said Frances.

“The brand new kitchen needs to be ripped out and refurbished, the bathroom needs to be done again, the tiled flooring which spans the entirety of our flat has to come up too.

“The walls are measuring up at 100% damp, so no doubt they’ll have to be sorted as well.

“It’s a complete nightmare, and that’s before you even begin to consider the loss of our personal belongings.”

The soon-to-be-wed pair have spent the past month being moved between accommodation paid for by Southern Water, but will be left to foot the bill themselves in the new year.

“From November 17, we stayed at the Premier Inn in Faversham for a few nights, then we were moved to the Premier Inn in Herne Bay for a week,” explained Frances.

“We’re now in our second Airbnb, and we’ve been told this is the last time they can put us up somewhere, so when January 2 rolls around we don’t have a clue where we’ll go.

“My family live in Scotland, Tony’s brother lives in Margate but is disabled and lives in council housing so there’s no room for us there.”

The impact of the flooding has left the couple considering their long-term future in the flat they have called home for more than seven years.

Tony said: “We love our flat, our landlords are amazing and always have been. But we’re scared to move back into that flat. We are having to consider everything.

“We can’t get insurance as the property is too high-risk, so how long does this go on for before we simply have to call it quits?

“People say ‘Why don’t you just move out?’ but it’s not as simple as that, and we shouldn’t be forced to move. We aren’t just customers, we’re people, we have feelings and lives.”

“We understand how distressing flooding can be and always seek to help our customers..."

Last month is thought to have been the wettest since 1836. Across the region, 245mm of rain fell in November compared to a typical level of 96mm.

A spokesman for Southern Water said: “We understand how distressing flooding can be and always seek to help our customers. On November 16-17 Herne Bay was hit with between 40 and 50mm of rain in 48 hours which overwhelmed all drainage systems.

"We arranged temporary accommodation for the worst affected customers while our clean up teams made properties habitable and ensured electrics were safe.

"While no compensation is payable as the flooding was caused by severe rainfall, because of the impact we are offering goodwill payments of £5,000 to those who suffered damage and disruption to help with their recovery.

"As one of the agencies with responsibilities around flooding, we work closely with council departments, the Environment Agency and others to mitigate flood risks and help with the impact.”

"It really does feel like we have no home, no Christmas and no hope..."

But the couple’s anger isn’t just directed at Southern Water. They believe the county-wide issue of over-building is fuelling the problem.

Tony said: “Where does the buck stop? The various councils continue to sign off on houses where the infrastructure cannot sustain the current demand.

“It’s a vicious circle, but it’s highly frustrating when the people are the ones who pay the prices.

“How many times do we have to see people suffer for no good reason before the higher-ups realise that it can’t go on the way it is, not without massive funding to help utilities cope.”

Frances and Tony say they are trying to keep positive, but the impact of the floods has left them feeling drained and exhausted.

“In the space of two hours, we saw the work of the past 16 months literally be washed away again," said Frances.

“We know we can get through this, we’ve done it before and we’ll do it again.

“But right now, it really does feel like we have no home, no Christmas and no hope.”