Channel 5's Reuben Owen says 'we need to fix this' in worrying moment with girlfriend

Reuben Owen leaps into action with a 'hero move' to tackle flooding after torrential downpours. In the latest instalment of his series, Reuben: Life in the Dales, Reuben Owen was summoned for an urgent repair job to prevent a road from being submerged due to relentless rain.

The Yorkshire Dales were hit by intense rainfall, particularly affecting Swaledale, where Reuben Owen and his partner Sarah were called upon to mend a century-old Victorian culvert situated beside a road leading to a secluded farmhouse.

The road faced imminent flooding as the culvert, damaged by the recent downpours, became blocked. Reuben expressed his concern, stating: "So it's the only access to that house, so if we don't fix it they can't get out very well."

Complicating the situation further, the repair work on the culvert had to be carried out entirely manually. Armed with shovels, Reuben and his team set about excavating the area surrounding the culvert.

Despite the challenging weather conditions, they persevered, removing the hefty stones that formed the culvert in order to rebuild the waterway. With ropes and teamwork, they successfully cleared the obstruction, restoring the flow of water, reports Yorkshire Live.

Once the soil was back in place, the culvert stood restored to its former glory. Reuben reflected on the importance of traditional methods, remarking: "Fixing it properly in the old ways is what kind of keeps Swaledale, Swaledale, you know what I mean?"

Sarah commented, "It's just kind of nice to redo it how they did back in the day. It makes you appreciate all the hard work because, I mean, we're only doing this tiny piece. You can't imagine how long it took them all to do all of this. It's just nice to carry on tradition."

In a stroke of good luck, their hard work was fruitful and the adjacent road was spared from flooding due to the repaired culvert.

Life in the Dales airs Thursdays at 8pm on Channel 5.