NEW homeowner George Fodor woke to find a barricade of sandbags protecting his street from the rising River Ouse today - only four days after he moved in.

He arrived from Chelmsford, Essex, last weekend for work, and picked up the keys to his new River Street home, in Clementhorpe, on Saturday.

"I woke up this morning and at the end of the street was a wall of sandbags," he said.

"It was quite shocking to see that."

He said he had been told the house had been flooded in November 2000, but did not expect it to happen again.

"We were told it was the first time in 400 years that the river had got to that level, and it may be another 400 years before it happened again," he said.

"Then four days after we move in, we see this happening. It is amazing to see and it's going to be a nerve-racking day waiting to see how high it gets."

His house has been completely refurbished since it was flooded in 2000.

"I'm beginning to think maybe we're going to need to do it again, and I'll be checking with my insurance company to make sure we're covered for it," he said. "I remember watching the floods on the TV when I was in Chelmsford, but you don't realise what it's like until you're living in it."

Homewowners in this region believe central and local Government should be doing more to prevent another flooding disaster, a new study reveals today.

Almost half of residents in the north-east - including North Yorkshire - say they are ready to take the matter into their own hands and lobby Government in an attempt to better safeguard their properties, according to the research, commissioned by Norwich Union. But more than a third of people do not know how to go about lobbying their local MP and Government in campaigning for changes.

Now the nation's largest insurer, which has a major base in York, is launching a new national Home And Dry campaign to encourage people to establish their own local flood action groups.

Norwich Union is distributing an action pack full of information about where responsibility lies locally and centrally for flood and coastline defences, how to set up a local flood action group and attract members, and how to contact and work with local MPs and the media.

Nick Pierson, head of household products for Norwich Union, said: "There are almost two million residential and commercial properties at risk of flooding in England. Flooding is traumatic and causes widespread damage to property - we want to prevent floods happening in the first place, which is why we're lobbying the Government to take immediate action.

"Our research shows that more than 70 per cent of people believe they can make a real difference by lobbying in their local area. The power of these individuals and small groups should not be underestimated - if their voices are heard by the right people, they have the potential to be very influential, and our information pack aims to simplify the process and help them on their way."

Selby MP John Grogan said: "Yorkshire has taken a real battering from the terrible weather conditions, and research shows that the risk of flooding is

set to increase further.

"As this risk rises, so does the need for flood defences, which is why I support this campaign to encourage residents to get involved at a local level."

For a free copy of Norwich Union's Home And Dry action pack, call 0800 0930303.

Updated: 15:34 Tuesday, February 12, 2002