A GAZETTE & Herald reader has made an anonymous donation to a couple whose home was badly affected by the recent flooding.

Nikki and Karon Hinds were left devastated after their property in Castlegate, Malton, was flooded six times in five weeks with sewage at the end of last year.

After reading about their plight, a cheque for £500 was sent to the Gazette to be passed on to the delighted couple.

Nikki said: “Wow – what an amazing gesture.” “This is fantastic news for us and couldn’t have come at a better time.”

He added that Karon was due to have an operation on Friday to have a tumour removed.

“She initially had it operated on a couple of years ago but it has grown back and is pressing on a nerve so is very painful,” Nikki said.

“I am going to stay with her at the hospital which costs a lot of money and plus, with all the stress, I have been off work as it plays up my Crohn’s Disease so we haven’t had the money to pay bills.”

The couple had their home restored by their landlord, the Fitzwilliam Estate before Christmas following the November flooding.

However, they faced a further setback after a pump generator, put in place to protect their property, was not refuelled and sewage once again poured in.

“We are starting to decorate again and hopefully get our lives back to normal,” Nikki said.

“The problem is that every time is rains, and with all this snow melting at the weekend, we are constantly worrying and out checking that the pump is working.”

He added: “I just can’t thank whoever has made this donation enough. Iit makes me so emotional to think that someone out there has thought about what we’ve been through.

“Through the paper we would both like to say a big thank-you.”