Busy Philipps uses canvas bag DIY trick to stop her New York home from flooding

As devastating flooding hit New York City, many houses were left with water pouring inside. The home of American actress Busy Philipps was no exception as she was forced to come up with an inventive way to slow the water coming in.

Footage of the floodwater pouring into Philipps’ basement was posted on her Instagram and showed her husband, Marc Silverstein, using a broom to try and stop the water from progressing.

In another clip, she revealed her creative DIY way of using canvas tote bags to construct make-shift sandbags to block where the water was entering the house.

Philipps explained: “I realised I had to make makeshift sandbags. So, you know, I have a ton of canvas bags from shops – reusable canvas bags – and I started filling it with flour and rice and oats and then the dirt that was pouring into the house.

“And guess what? It worked because I’m essentially f***ing MacGyver.”

MacGyver was a 1985 American action-adventure TV series in which the main character, undercover government agent MacGyver, would routinely use unconventional problem-solving skills to save lives.

Captioning the post, Philipps wrote: “If *FOR ONE SECOND* you *EVER* thought I was the type of person who would just GIVE UP when the flood started rising and the people who are supposed to come help are distracted by a myriad of other calamities SO THEY CAN’T SHOW UP, then I’m here to tell you- you’re VERY wrong.

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“Because *I’m* the bitch that will MacGyver canvas shopping bags into sandbags using the very dirt pouring into my own home (and also some rice and flour and yes maybe old croutons.)”

The storm that hit New York City was the remnants of Hurricane Ida. It caused flash flooding and record-breaking rain requiring the area to be designated a state of emergency.

The hurricane first struck New Orleans, where the whole city lost power, before travelling northeast towards New Jersey and New York, causing devastation in its path. At least 45 people are known to have died.