Water very nice day for a wet wedding! - Newlywed couple stranded in church after heavy downpour

Heavy downpours battered Sandal St Helen’s Church on Saturday as Neil and Katie Brook tied the knot.

The Portobello newlyweds and their guests were unable to leave after the ceremony, as water flooded the church path and swelled up to the doors of the building.

Mrs Brook, 34, said: “It had forecast rain all day but the weather kept changing from heavy showers to sunny the next minute.

“There had been a bit of a storm in the morning but by the time I left for the church, it was bright sunshine, and although I had bought an ivory umbrella, I didn’t even take it with me.

“Only after the ceremony did I notice the rain was coming down really badly. But I didn’t know it had flooded the doorway and how bad it was.

“We had to stay in the church for about half an hour. I just kept thinking everyone was going to get drenched.”

Church verger Sue Saville leapt into action, using a broom to push the water back, while others helped to build a barricade to stop it entering the building.

Reverend Rupert Martin, of Sandal Magna Parish, who conducted the ceremony said: “It thankfully didn’t come into the church.

“It was a dramatic event that the couple will certainly remember but the wedding wasn’t spoilt by it. The couple and their guests took it in good heart.

“It’s the first time I have ever experienced that and the first time our bell ringer had seen that amount of water. It was an exceptional event and I certainly wouldn’t have expected the church grounds to flood.

“The main thing is that everybody got in before the storm in time for the service and everybody got out - even if it was after a little while.”

The wedding party posed for pictures in the church until the water subsided, before heading on to the reception at Wakefield’s Cedar Court Hotel.

Mrs Brook, nee Carrington, said: “I don’t think anybody will forget that in a hurry. But it definitely didn’t dampen spirits.

“Everybody has been talking about it since. We all found it quite amusing.

“It was an absolutely brilliant day, very emotional, after ten years together. It could not have gone better, even with that bit of drama.”