:00:00. > :00:16.We investigate the tragedy in this Cornwall Street that left a woman
:00:17. > :00:19.dead and a family bereaved. I feel I have been robbed and it should not
:00:20. > :00:30.have happened. I am absolutely fuming. How Devon paper mill powered
:00:31. > :00:34.its waiter centuries of success. There is the factory and there is
:00:35. > :00:42.the river. Just the job. And will read tape proves the final straw for
:00:43. > :00:45.this Somerset thatch? Are you from the council? This is Inside Out
:00:46. > :01:07.Southwest. First night, the story of a fatal
:01:08. > :01:15.landslip that many here in the town where it happened say could have and
:01:16. > :01:20.should have been avoided. March the 21st last year, it had been raining
:01:21. > :01:26.for much of the day when 68`year`old Susan Norman returned to
:01:27. > :01:31.her flat in Looe. Mum was very much an old`fashioned person, proper rock
:01:32. > :01:38.bringing `` proper up bringing. Susan moved to Cornwall from Milton
:01:39. > :01:41.Keynes in the 1990s. The children followed her there shortly
:01:42. > :01:48.afterwards. The perfect place to retire. She just wanted a peaceful
:01:49. > :01:54.life. But that night Susan's life was cut short. Susan lived on the
:01:55. > :02:00.side of this steep valley, one of the main routes into Looe runs above
:02:01. > :02:04.the houses here. On the night of her death, heavy rain had been falling
:02:05. > :02:08.for two days. Her son was in the area and saw the conditions for
:02:09. > :02:15.himself. Driving down a river, basically. It was that bad. This
:02:16. > :02:19.footage was filmed by a local man that night. On the right`hand side,
:02:20. > :02:23.you can see the channel of water running along the road. Homes
:02:24. > :02:32.including Susan's are directly below. Matt says that drains were
:02:33. > :02:40.blocked. Two drains but not doing any good. Dwayne Bown who lived in
:02:41. > :02:46.the flat above Susan's was woken just after 5am. I heard a massive
:02:47. > :02:55.bang. First reaction, get out of bed. Went to go into the front room
:02:56. > :03:01.from the bedroom, went into the front room, as soon as I got in the
:03:02. > :03:06.comedy kitchen completely collapsed. `` as soon as I got in there, the
:03:07. > :03:13.kitchen completely collapsed. There was mud, soil. Somehow he scrambled
:03:14. > :03:21.out. The slope mind the property had collapsed. Tonnes of earth had
:03:22. > :03:26.swamped the building. All that was standing work to walls, to retaining
:03:27. > :03:34.walls, one either side and the actual bit in the middle where the
:03:35. > :03:38.doors. It looks like a shell. He thought Susan was away at relatives
:03:39. > :03:46.raised the alarm and the search began. This morning, a sniffer dog
:03:47. > :03:53.was sent into the building and fire crews used thermal imaging but no
:03:54. > :03:57.sign of life was found. As news of the landslip came through, both Matt
:03:58. > :04:05.and Helen rushed to the site. As soon as I saw it, I knew immediately
:04:06. > :04:09.that there was no chance. It was not recognisable. The back was
:04:10. > :04:16.completely gone. It was just earth and tonnes of earth and I thought,
:04:17. > :04:25.there is no hope at all. That was it. I just stood there in the rain
:04:26. > :04:30.waiting. I knew there would be no hope. It was not until late
:04:31. > :04:37.afternoon that the rescue team located Susan's Audie. Even now, it
:04:38. > :04:43.is still hard to believe it has happened `` Susan's body. Since that
:04:44. > :04:57.day, I have slept on the sofa. I look at the picture and I know that
:04:58. > :05:01.if I wake up... It is difficult. I just hope I wake up and do not see
:05:02. > :05:10.the picture on the wall and then I know it is just a nightmare. Dwayne
:05:11. > :05:16.was recovering at his parents' house when he was told Susan's body had
:05:17. > :05:20.been found. I felt really guilty. I felt I could have done something,
:05:21. > :05:30.maybe gone in to see if I could have helped, done anything. The police
:05:31. > :05:41.told me literally it was instant. It still does not take your mind off
:05:42. > :05:46.the guilt that you feel. As well as guilt, there was anger. According to
:05:47. > :05:49.some of Susan's neighbours, what happened here could have been
:05:50. > :05:53.prevented. It does make me angry because that is the point. I think
:05:54. > :05:59.it was avoidable, this whole tragedy. Tim owns the property two
:06:00. > :06:02.doors down from where Susan lived. After the landslide, his family
:06:03. > :06:10.moved out for their own safety. Very upsetting. This is obviously
:06:11. > :06:14.damaged. In the eight years before the landslip, Tim wrote to Cornwall
:06:15. > :06:18.Council numerous times to tell them that in his view the slope was not
:06:19. > :06:22.safe. He believed water was not draining away properly from the road
:06:23. > :06:27.above and he was worried kerbstones which should have protected the
:06:28. > :06:32.properties below were not adequate. Water he felt was saturating the
:06:33. > :06:37.slope, making it unstable. The first hint of any problems was about 2005
:06:38. > :06:44.when we had a series of floodings down the steps and a patios from the
:06:45. > :06:48.top road. That was every time it rained heavily. This happened about
:06:49. > :06:52.four or five times. I read to the council saying it was not good
:06:53. > :07:00.enough. They had left the kerbstones too short. In 2006, the council did
:07:01. > :07:04.flood alleviation work, extending the kerbstones. But Tim says the
:07:05. > :07:07.problems remained. Then four months before Susan's death, this part of
:07:08. > :07:19.the slope next to the houses collapsed. There was a great slip of
:07:20. > :07:24.land down here and onto the road. It covered the road. For quite a long
:07:25. > :07:29.time, we had no proper access. In December, 2012, Tim wrote to the
:07:30. > :07:34.council asking, whether we have to run the risk of loss of life before
:07:35. > :07:38.blasting safeguards are put in place. The council's contractors
:07:39. > :07:43.said numerous inspections of the site I experts had taken place and
:07:44. > :07:48.their recommendations had been carried out. Many of the residents
:07:49. > :07:53.were not satisfied. In February, 14 of them sent Cornwall Council a
:07:54. > :07:58.dossier of their concerns. It included these pictures date marked
:07:59. > :08:04.January, 2013, which allegedly showed water damage to a retaining
:08:05. > :08:08.wall behind Susan's flat. In March, work was carried out at the
:08:09. > :08:11.property. We understand contractors employed by the owner were building
:08:12. > :08:22.a new wall in front of the retaining wall. In the early hours of March
:08:23. > :08:25.the slope collapsed. The reasons why are now being investigated by the
:08:26. > :08:29.police and the Health and Safety Executive. We ask all will council
:08:30. > :08:33.to respond to the concerns about the sequence of events here, but they
:08:34. > :08:39.declined to comment, saying, it would be inappropriate while an
:08:40. > :08:41.investigation was ongoing. But Matt feels the evidence that warnings to
:08:42. > :08:47.the council were not heeded is overwhelming. I just cannot believe
:08:48. > :08:51.the arrogance of the people to have that kind of information given to
:08:52. > :08:56.them and not acting on it, until it is too late, it is like they had
:08:57. > :09:00.letters saying, is it going to take the death to do something?
:09:01. > :09:07.Obviously, that is what they were waiting for. It is mid November,
:09:08. > :09:11.eight months after the landslip, work on clearing the site has just
:09:12. > :09:15.started. Matt has come to find out when he will get his mother's
:09:16. > :09:23.belongings back. He is angry. It is annoying to know that all of my
:09:24. > :09:27.mum's possessions are buried there and wasting away. That would really
:09:28. > :09:31.upset my mum, to know all of her prize possessions are not only on
:09:32. > :09:37.view to the public but they have not been recovered. They have now got
:09:38. > :09:40.back some of her belongings, but the family is critical of Cornwall
:09:41. > :09:45.Council, one of the authorities involved, it in enabling the site
:09:46. > :09:49.clearance. We have not had any response from them. I have never had
:09:50. > :09:55.a call from anyone senior at the council. Never had an offer of
:09:56. > :09:59.support, a phone call, a letter, absolutely nothing. I think the way
:10:00. > :10:05.they have dealt with it is very insensitive. Dwayne says he has had
:10:06. > :10:10.to rely on friends and family for support. I have not heard from the
:10:11. > :10:15.police since it has happened. I have not heard from any of the Cornwall
:10:16. > :10:22.Council. I have not heard from anyone. It is like I am not even on
:10:23. > :10:26.the radar, if you know what I mean. The council told us it had worked
:10:27. > :10:32.hard to keep the community informed and added that it was a very tragic
:10:33. > :10:36.incident and they offer condolences to the family and friends of Susan
:10:37. > :10:41.Norman. But now there is a new upset, a letter from the council to
:10:42. > :10:45.several Sandplace Road residents. It says structures are potentially
:10:46. > :10:52.dangerous and it includes an estimate of making them safe in one
:10:53. > :10:57.case of ?50,000. Whether all of the residents are expected to meet these
:10:58. > :11:00.costs is unclear. The council declined to respond when we asked
:11:01. > :11:09.for clarification. But Tim says he is appalled. Very angry. Very
:11:10. > :11:16.angry. As well as concerned. That has been the story of the last six,
:11:17. > :11:19.seven years. Whatever the outcome of the police investigation into
:11:20. > :11:24.Susan's death, her family are determined to keep fighting for
:11:25. > :11:28.answers. I will not let anyone brush this under the carpet. I feel I have
:11:29. > :11:35.been robbed and my children have been robbed of ever knowing her and
:11:36. > :11:39.knowing what a wonderful person she was. Kind and caring. It should not
:11:40. > :11:53.have happened. I am absolutely fuming. Fishing and mining, the raw
:11:54. > :12:00.product in distress which have put the south`west on the economic map.
:12:01. > :12:02.But we have been pretty good over the years at making some fine stuff
:12:03. > :12:13.too. A new year and a new diary but this
:12:14. > :12:29.year, unlucky enough to `` lucky enough to have a very special one.
:12:30. > :12:38.42 quids worth. It is the paper in it made here right in Devon. It is a
:12:39. > :12:38.fine looking factory making top`quality paper for discerning
:12:39. > :12:57.buyers. This is Stowford paper mill in
:12:58. > :13:07.Devon. They have been churning out paper here since 1787. Not any more
:13:08. > :13:15.though. In November last year we sent in our cameras to get a final
:13:16. > :13:18.glimpse of papermaking here. These machines were producing 10,000
:13:19. > :13:20.tonnes of paper every yearbut this was the very last roll to come off
:13:21. > :13:30.the production line. In his 27 years at Stowford, Clive
:13:31. > :13:48.Wilson has been involved in all aspects of the mill. I have worked
:13:49. > :13:52.my whole career hair. It is very sad for those people who have not been
:13:53. > :13:58.able to complete their working time at the mill. Trevor Chandler is one
:13:59. > :14:02.of many who are moving on. He followed his father into a job at
:14:03. > :14:06.Stowford and stayed for 23 years. The bunch that are here, we're the
:14:07. > :14:10.last, which is a shame because people before us carried the baton
:14:11. > :14:11.for us and the baton stops if we put the baton down now we'all go
:14:12. > :14:20.elsewhere so that's a shame. It wasn't always this way though.
:14:21. > :14:26.For 226 years the mill was a thriving part of life in Ivybridge.
:14:27. > :14:32.Like most mills that sprung up in the late 18th centurypaper making at
:14:33. > :14:39.Stowford was done by hand in the early days. It was a laborious task.
:14:40. > :14:44.Old rags were beaten to a pulp, flattened into shape and then dried.
:14:45. > :15:00.Being so close to Plymouth, the mill was in prime position to collect
:15:01. > :15:06.discarded rags and cloths. The old dockyard, they have many materials
:15:07. > :15:12.here. The naval dockyard, in fact there were records of sales of sails
:15:13. > :15:16.specifically for paper making. Over the years Stowford developed into a
:15:17. > :15:19.modern mill we see today but this loft where the rags were sorted for
:15:20. > :15:26.production still remains pretty much intact.
:15:27. > :15:31.These wonderful archive pictures record the process of rag sorting in
:15:32. > :15:32.the early 1960s, a process that would have hardly changed from when
:15:33. > :15:45.the mill first opened. It was never a pleasant job. Making
:15:46. > :15:50.paper by hand slowly died out as machines took over. But you can
:15:51. > :15:54.still get a fascininating glimpse of how it was once done. This is the
:15:55. > :15:58.only commercial mill left in the country where they still make paper
:15:59. > :16:05.in much the same way as Stowford's early employees. If you take the
:16:06. > :16:17.water away from that it is a sheet of paper it is a pulp. . It all
:16:18. > :16:20.started in China nearly 2000 years ago and here at the Two Rivers Paper
:16:21. > :16:24.Mill on Exmoorthey're still drawing on many of the same techniques. It's
:16:25. > :16:27.likely it came from people who were weaving clothes from fibres of
:16:28. > :16:30.plants and someone probably realised that the fibres that come off when
:16:31. > :16:34.you're washing clothes and draining them would attach to each other and
:16:35. > :16:39.someone probably went that bit further and hammered the hell out of
:16:40. > :16:43.it. If you wash the fibres that come off and put them onto the surface of
:16:44. > :16:46.a sieve you will get a sheet of paper. Back at Stowford, this is
:16:47. > :16:53.what powered the tools that pounded the rags here. In the days before
:16:54. > :16:56.steam power one of the primary requirements for a paper mill or
:16:57. > :16:59.indeed most other forms of industrial enterprise was a fast
:17:00. > :17:06.flowing reliable source of water to power the thing. There's the
:17:07. > :17:15.factory, there's the River Erme, just the job. As Stowford grew so
:17:16. > :17:17.did the number of its competitors and by 1820 there were 40 other
:17:18. > :17:31.paper mills operating in Devon. The reason this survived was that it
:17:32. > :17:34.moved from making volume papers to making smaller volume speciality
:17:35. > :17:37.papers. It found a niche to make watermarked papers for special end
:17:38. > :17:40.use. Quality paper has been key to Stowford's success. Over the years
:17:41. > :17:49.they've made everything from the finest writing paper to government
:17:50. > :17:54.security papers. The people that worked here had to be highly
:17:55. > :17:58.skilled. They gained knowledge from their peak `` predecessors and it
:17:59. > :18:05.was essential to have that level of skill to know how to make these
:18:06. > :18:07.complex papers. But it wasn't just their superior product that put
:18:08. > :18:11.Stowford ahead, a timely arrival from London in the mid`19th Century
:18:12. > :18:16.helped the Mill's fortunes flourish. In 1848 Brunel brought the South
:18:17. > :18:20.Devon railway to Ivybridge. Its arrival gave Stowford direct access
:18:21. > :18:25.to wider markets ,giving the Mill an economic boost that would last well
:18:26. > :18:35.into the 20th Century. Railway was right next to the paper mill. It
:18:36. > :18:43.enabled raw materials and paper to be transported to markets and export
:18:44. > :18:46.using the railway. Paper was sent off around the world and by the 20th
:18:47. > :18:50.century Stowford was thriving as other small mills slowly disappeared
:18:51. > :18:53.In fact that's one of our claims to fame that we produced the paper for
:18:54. > :18:59.marriage birth and death certificates for many years.
:19:00. > :19:14.We have many of the old documents. This goes back to 1916. It gives an
:19:15. > :19:18.idea of the range of products. We produced the paper used for marriage
:19:19. > :19:22.and death certificates. There is a high chance that your birth
:19:23. > :19:29.certificate, the paper that it was printed on, was made here. This is
:19:30. > :19:34.where your birth certificate was born. Over the last century Stowford
:19:35. > :19:36.embraced the frequent advances in modern technology investing in
:19:37. > :19:39.state`of`the`art machines and high`tech computers to run them. And
:19:40. > :19:50.as the Mill grew so did Ivybridge, transforming from a village into a
:19:51. > :19:54.small town by the 1970s. There were up to 300 people working in the mill
:19:55. > :19:57.when there were only 2000 people living in Ivybridge so most of the
:19:58. > :20:04.other people would have been families and suppliers to the site.
:20:05. > :20:11.For many of those now leaving, the workforce was one big family. It is
:20:12. > :20:15.where we have come to work and where we have spent a lot of time. Over
:20:16. > :20:18.the years we've pretty much shared every emotion going. I suspect we've
:20:19. > :20:22.had major rows, fall outs, people have met and got married. You had
:20:23. > :20:26.the full spectrum of emotion I should imagine. In recent years,
:20:27. > :20:30.demand for paper has fallen and the mill's owners are transferring the
:20:31. > :20:33.work that Stowford did to Scotland. Most of the 100 employees who lost
:20:34. > :20:38.their jobs have found new employment locally. And for Clive, after a
:20:39. > :20:46.whole career in the paper industry, early retirement now beckons.
:20:47. > :20:57.It's very sad to see. It is sad to see it close and the equipment
:20:58. > :21:02.removed. It's not really the way I would have liked to end my career.
:21:03. > :21:05.The site has now been sold for development but the old buildings
:21:06. > :21:07.are listed so whatever happens they'll remain and the history of
:21:08. > :21:25.Stowford Mill will live on. We tend to think of patching as a
:21:26. > :21:31.traditional south`west craft but as we have been finding out, one family
:21:32. > :21:32.firm in Somerset has been encountering some very contemporary
:21:33. > :21:48.problems. It is an ancient craft thought to go
:21:49. > :21:53.back to the Bronze Age. Thatchers have passed their skills from
:21:54. > :21:57.generation to generation. The method is changing little over the
:21:58. > :22:09.centuries. This family are no exception, tracing their heritage
:22:10. > :22:14.back to the 18th century. Richard Wright is still working after 44
:22:15. > :22:21.years in the trade. This will be a big help to the owner. It is a
:22:22. > :22:30.family run business. They can trace our family back to 1781 as
:22:31. > :22:38.Thatchers. I had a brother younger than me and both of us learnt from
:22:39. > :22:45.my father. I went on my own at 22 and started my own business. Adrian
:22:46. > :22:55.has been with me for 31 years. My son, Andrew Com he is 38 and my
:22:56. > :22:58.grandson is 21. They are a tight`knit team and business is
:22:59. > :23:03.booming. It is the start of the summer and they are booked on
:23:04. > :23:07.back`to`back jobs for their busiest season. The latest job is a
:23:08. > :23:14.conversion, removing a corrugated roof to replace it with thatch and
:23:15. > :23:19.they get straight to work removing the old timbers. This is the ideal
:23:20. > :23:25.job and you have one week's work of getting the old roof off and getting
:23:26. > :23:31.the timbers on and the rafters. It breaks it up a bit. It is
:23:32. > :23:36.interesting from start to scratch. This cottage is a listed building
:23:37. > :23:41.and work cannot continue without the approval of structural engineers.
:23:42. > :23:50.Also the all`important council representative. Let us have a chat
:23:51. > :23:56.about this. The concern was to keep the original timber but we were not
:23:57. > :24:02.able to get up here. The idea was once work was started, we could
:24:03. > :24:07.agree. It is only day one of the job and an issue has come up already.
:24:08. > :24:14.The man from the council is concerned some of the original beams
:24:15. > :24:19.have been removed. This should have been left in there. Working with
:24:20. > :24:24.listed builders is never straightforward and the officials
:24:25. > :24:31.have the final say. They are taking it away to store it in the mean team
:24:32. > :24:36.`` meantime. The timbers are coming back in. Modern`day fetching isn't
:24:37. > :24:42.all that straightforward. `` thatching.
:24:43. > :24:46.The essentials have remained unchanged for centuries and in
:24:47. > :24:52.gathering the raw materials, the process is still headache free. For
:24:53. > :25:00.many years, John has been supplying the rights to straw using a method
:25:01. > :25:07.to prevent the harvest. I have been doing this for 30 years now. We have
:25:08. > :25:11.just about got the hang of the job. We put eight sheets together so they
:25:12. > :25:18.can dry out. The wind can get through them and it sheds the rain.
:25:19. > :25:26.They stray `` they stay dry like that. The only way we have
:25:27. > :25:31.mechanised it is when we get it in. This job, you have to use the
:25:32. > :25:37.traditional machinery because it when `` when it gets through a
:25:38. > :25:42.modern combine harvester, it gets mashed up. Will any of this harvest
:25:43. > :25:47.get through to the cottage conversion? I am happy with the
:25:48. > :25:55.approach that retains the modern timbers. On inspection of the roof,
:25:56. > :26:00.another problem has been thrown up. The old woodwork may have to stay
:26:01. > :26:08.but it's poor conditions means a steel frame must be made to support
:26:09. > :26:13.it. You will probably not want to be here for another month. Richard's
:26:14. > :26:23.summer schedule will be thrown into chaos. It looks like filming might
:26:24. > :26:33.be off for the day! I might say something. This is the first time we
:26:34. > :26:41.have come up against anything like this. Once he hasn't had time to
:26:42. > :26:46.cool off, Richard is more philosophical. We have to make up
:26:47. > :26:52.some steelwork to support the frame. It is fair enough that they are
:26:53. > :27:01.going to hold us up which we don't like.
:27:02. > :27:08.You can see the joints now with a new oak beam put in. To the side we
:27:09. > :27:14.have the C section steel with some type bars in it. After the setbacks
:27:15. > :27:20.and nearly three months delay, the roof has been repaired and it is
:27:21. > :27:27.ready for thatching. It should be structurally sound for hundreds of
:27:28. > :27:34.years. It will not go anywhere now. They have started thatching this
:27:35. > :27:38.week. They are getting it on as quick as we can as we have been here
:27:39. > :27:46.for a long time doing all the timber work. We had to leave the job for a
:27:47. > :27:51.bit and go on to another job. It wasn't really a hold up to us, it
:27:52. > :27:55.was something that had to be done. It seems Richard is happy to be
:27:56. > :28:01.getting on with the job but will future generations of the family be
:28:02. > :28:09.as happy to keep thatching? I am hoping it will carry on. Andrew and
:28:10. > :28:21.Sean will keep it going. Sean is only young and iffy has two or three
:28:22. > :28:27.sons... It has been a long summer but the house is at last beautifully
:28:28. > :28:28.finished and their thatching dynasty looks set to continue for the next
:28:29. > :28:41.300 years. That is all for this week. Join us
:28:42. > :29:11.next Monday for new stories from the south`west. See you then.
:29:12. > :29:16.Jude Law has given evidence at the phone hacking trial. The court heard
:29:17. > :29:22.a family member had sold stories about him. A former reporter said he
:29:23. > :29:26.discussed intercepting phone calls between two newspapers. Anger over
:29:27. > :29:30.flooding, a government minister has been heckled by residents in
:29:31. > :29:35.Somerset. He promised an action plan.
:29:36. > :29:41.Dave Lee Travis has told the court he is not a sexual predator. He said
:29:42. > :29:48.he has a cuddly nature towards women and denies indecent assault charges.
:29:49. > :29:53.Bill Roach has been cleared of one offence.
:29:54. > :29:57.His defence should start tomorrow. At the Grammy towards last night,
:29:58. > :30:03.Daft It seems Richard is happy to be
:30:04. > :30:04.Around 1000 women treated by future Ar
:30:05. > :30:06.Around 1000 women treated by disgraced gynaecologist at the Royal
:30:07. > :30:07.Cornwall Hospital movie