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On This Day in Wembury

30 August 1950 — Wembury Vicarage Flooded

On this day heavy overnight rain flooded Wembury Vicarage. The vicar, Reverend K. Tagg, awoke at 5 a.m. to find torrents of water pouring through the downstairs rooms. Devon County Fire Service was called from Plymstock. A swollen stream had overflowed, sending muddy water down to the low-lying vicarage and blocking drains. The flood level reached several inches to a foot. Firemen quickly diverted the flow and helped clear up, while preventing a potential fire when an electric table lamp shorted on contact with the water. Despite the damage, Rev. Tagg still took morning service and noted that nearby fields were submerged—something he had not seen in his nine years at Wembury.

Reflection: The vicarage flood shows how vulnerable parts of Wembury can be to sudden downpours. The risks of blocked drains, electrical hazards, and flash flooding were starkly revealed in 1950, just as they remain in the village today.

Source: Western Evening Herald, 31 August 1950 (reporting the events of 30 August).

On This Day in Wembury: The Village Telephone Pest

On 30 August 1997, the Western Evening Herald reported that police were investigating a disturbing series of obscene telephone calls made to homes in Wembury and Heybrook Bay.

Residents had answered their telephones only to hear heavy breathing or a man making offensive suggestions. One particularly unpleasant call was made to a young boy, who was told to pass an obscene message to his mother.

The calls had apparently been taking place for about two weeks, but suddenly increased on the Thursday before the newspaper report. At least twelve households contacted the police that day. One woman in Wembury received four separate calls within just half an hour.

Community policeman PC Fuller admitted that officers did not know why so many calls had been made on that particular day. He believed it was quite possible that the caller lived locally, although this had not been established.

Police began working with British Telecom engineers in an attempt to trace the source of the calls. PC Fuller also activated the Neighbourhood Watch Link Scheme covering Wembury and Heybrook Bay. This brought forward still more residents who had received similar calls, including elderly people who found them deeply offensive.

At the time of the report, nobody had been able to describe the caller’s accent and no suspect had been identified.

The story is a reminder of how much more anonymous the telephone could feel before widespread caller identification and digital records. A ringing telephone was normally welcomed into the home without hesitation. For the people targeted during those unsettling weeks in 1997, however, every ring must have brought a moment of apprehension.

Source: Western Evening Herald, 30 August 1997