THE Duchess of Cornwall offered her sympathy to flooded out residents of Malmesbury today when she dropped in at their local pub.

She sat down in the Rose and have a proper chat with residents of the town bridge area who lost their possessions when the river burst its banks early on November 25 and to tell them of her own experiences of flooding at home in Lacock.

“She asked me if I had a fireman’s lift,” said Tracey Tucker, who had to be rescued from her home where the water was three feet deep.

The pub opened its doors to householders and helpers and kept them supplied with hot tea even as the freezing water lapped at its front door.

And it was the Duchess, due to join the Prince of Wales later in the evening to switch the Christmas lights on at nearby Tetbury, who decided the pub should be the venue for her visit.

“We were only doing our bit,” said landlord Tom Hudson. “She had obviously read things about what happened and it is nice that she is interested.”