Shut North Staffordshire road resembles lake and there’s more rain on the way

A flood-hit road where firefighters had to rescue stranded motorists remains shut - and under water. Such is the depth of the standing water on Blackbank Road, in Knutton [1], that just the top of a traffic cone can be seen peeping out. The route is closed today (December 8) after it fell victim to the conditions at the start of the week.

A number of roads around the county had been left underwater after the weekend's snow melted to a backdrop of heavy rain on Monday - with those showers continuing into Tuesday and returning today. It even saw sandbags dished out to residents between Madeley and Onneley [2] where the road was also closed. Other routes shut by the conditions included roads in Coton, Alrewas, Tatenhill and Drayton Bassett.

Such were the problems on Blackbank Road that firefighters from Burslem and Hanley were sent to the scene on Wednesday morning where police shut the road. At the time Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service says crews were greeted by 3ft of water where two vehicles were found stuck.[3][4][5][6]

The flooded road in Knutton

The Staffordshire County Council [7] closure remains in place while the area is set for more heavy rain - and strong winds. StokeonTrentLive has reported today how a yellow alert for wind is in place across North Staffordshire from 9am on Saturday with heavy rainfall also predicted overnight.

Councillor David Williams, cabinet member for highways and transport, said: "We are aware of the flooding issue on the road and our highways team has already carried out investigative work. Crews believe that an outfall pipe on private land adjacent to the road is blocked. We are liaising with the landowner and hope to make the necessary repairs in this financial year."

References

^ Knutton (www.stokesentinel.co.uk)
^ It even saw sandbags dished out to residents between Madeley and Onneley (www.stokesentinel.co.uk)
^ Burslem (www.stokesentinel.co.uk)
^ Hanley (www.stokesentinel.co.uk)
^ Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service (www.stokesentinel.co.uk)
^ were greeted by 3ft of water where two vehicles were found stuck. (www.stokesentinel.co.uk)
^ Staffordshire County Council (www.stokesentinel.co.uk)
^ Sign up to our main daily newsletter here and get all the latest news straight to your inbox for FREE (data.reachplc.com)