ONE day the Pendleside village of Roughlee had a road and a bus service.

The next, it had neither after a summer deluge in 1967 swept away the main carriageway and virtually cut the community off.

Four months later, it still had neither and residents were getting rather irate.

Can you remember that time, 40 odd years ago, when school children had to walk more than a mile to their lessons and those who relied on public transport had to trudge along country lanes to the next nearest bus stop?

The village was left nearly isolated after Pendle Water, swollen to 20ft by torrential rain, swept away the main Blacko Bar Road, to within a few feet of a huddle of cottages.

It was the only road passable by bus and villagers were served by eight services a day.

By December, after workmen started repair work, then seemed to abandon it, licensee of the Bay Horse village pub Ted Smith began a campaign to get Roughlee connected to the outside world.

The situation cost him hundreds of pounds in lost business and he said: “It really is pathetic. A lot of incon-venience has been caused to villagers, we need this work to be speeded up.”