‘I watched friends being rescued’: Google ‘stumps’ social media with jovial cartoon marking devastating rains of 2015

Google’s December 5 ‘doodle’ seems to have missed the mark by commemorating the UK’s heaviest single day of rainfall with a lighthearted animation which fails to acknowledge the death and devastation wreaked by the deluge.

In early December 2015, Storm Desmond brought a heavy downpour, coupled with strong winds, the worst of which impacted Cumbria in northern England. A record 314.4mm of rain fell on the area in just 24 hours over December 4 and 5, according to the UK Met Office. 

The storm killed one person in London and one in Cumbria, and caused around £500 million of damage in Cumbria.

“On the anniversary of the rainiest day in the history of the UK, today’s Doodle celebrates Wellington boots, or 'wellies,' a rainy day staple for centuries,” Google wrote of its doodle four years after the storm. “What better way to commemorate this deluge than to pay homage to the wellie, for keeping feet warm and dry during the heaviest downpours?”

Social media users said they were “stumped” by Google’s choice of doodle, which usually mark big anniversaries or notable human achievements, given the stark contrast between the light-hearted animation and the devastation of Storm Desmond.

“I watched friends being rescued from their upstairs window by the coastguard on BBC News at Ten, but sure let’s remember that with a cute animation about wellies,”wrote one miffed commenter. 

“Commemorating the 2015 Cumbrian floods with a ‘lighthearted and unadulterated fun’ animation about wellies,” another wrote.

According to Google’s own map of the doodle’s ‘reach,’ it has been seen by people across the UK, France, Italy, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Japan. 

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