Britain’s flooding chaos to continue for FIVE more days: Environment Agency says more homes will be ruined
Published: 01:29, 7 January 2024 | Updated: 01:42, 7 January 2024
Flooding chaos is set to continue across Britain for five more days, with the many more homes and businesses set to be wrecked by water.
More than 1,800 properties were evacuated yesterday, while the Environment Agency has 191 flood warnings and a further 207 flood alerts in place today.
Continued heavy downpours into next week will create high water levels with areas around the around the rivers Trent, Severn and Thames valleys most likely to be affected.
The ongoing floods have sparked a political row with Liberal Democrat spokeswoman for housing and communities Helen Morgan last night calling on Rishi Sunak to visit affected areas to ‘see for himself the devastation caused’.[2][3]
Meanwhile Labour accused the Government of being ‘asleep at the wheel’ over flood warnings with leader Sir Keir Starmer[4] vowing to make flood defences ‘fit for purpose’, adding that ‘people’s lives shouldn’t be upended by extreme rain’.
Flood water rises above the windows in central York after the River Ouse burst its banks
Kayakers look on as flooded motorists plough through deep water in Pulborough after the River Arun burst its banks
Cars are surrounded by flood lands after the River Arun burst its banks following Storm Henk
In a joint announcement, Communities Secretary Michael Gove and Environment Secretary Steve Barclay said financial support was available to eligible areas in England that experience ‘exceptional localised flooding’ between January 2 and 8.
Mr Gove and Mr Barclay said those affected would ‘not have to deal with it alone’ as they announced funding and tax relief for communities feeling the effects of flooding.
The miserable wet weather comes as Britain braces for the Big Freeze which is set to see temperatures plunge as low as -6 degrees with 10cm of snow expected in northern parts of England.
The cold snap led to the UK Health Security Agency issuing a yellow cold weather alert.
Katharine Smith, flood duty manager at the Environment Agency, said: ‘Significant river flooding impacts are still expected.
‘Over the next few days across parts of the river Thames in Oxfordshire as well as the River Trent near Nottingham, and the River Severn, including Gloucester.
‘The prolonged wet weather and intense rainfall has led to flooding impacts and our thoughts are with all of those affected.’
The floods have caused a political row, with Liberal Democrat spokeswoman for housing and communities Helen Morgan calling on Rishi Sunak to visit affected areas, saying: ‘The Prime Minister should see for himself the devastation caused by these floods.’
A footbridge is seen after the River Arun burst its banks in the aftermath of Storm Henk, at Pulboroug
The Environment Agency has put 191 flood warnings and a further 207 flood alerts in place today
A woman wades through the water carrying her dog at Thames Ditton Island near Kingston Upon Thames
Roads still flooded in Essex yesterday with abandoned cars taken over by the floodwater
Flood water hits central York after the River Ouse broke its banks following Storm Henk
David Walters, 51, from South Lincolnshire, has spent 11 years developing his caravan park business from scratch but on Wednesday it was severely damaged by the floods in the wake of Storm Henk.
Mr Walters, who worked as a ‘one man band’ to develop Cresslands Touring Park, said it is ‘heart-breaking’ to see, with everything ‘left drenched’ before receding to the boreholes near to his home.
He said: ‘It flooded a couple of Christmases ago, but historically the river (near the site) has never been above 1.5m. But I had this horrendous feeling the night before because of the saturation and the atrocious weather we’ve had through December and into January.
‘As you’re seeing, water rising in such a rapid way heading towards you, you’re almost weirdly paralysed.
‘I was just staring at certain elements of my garden, for example, and just watching it creep up and just praying and hoping it didn’t hit my home, which it thankfully didn’t, but everything else got completely drenched
There has been no running water on the site for the last four days, the owner said, with the ‘little play areas’ he had being pushed from the front to the pack of the site.
‘Debris off the fields that the water has washed through is completely strewn all over everything and everything stinks to high heaven,’ Mr Walters added. ‘Because there’s no running water, I can’t clean or mop anything.’
Submerged cars sit in a car park after heavy rains and sewer system overflows in Wallingford, Oxfordshire
An abandoned black BMW sitting in floodwater has been given a parking ticket after road was closed due to flooding in Cookham, Berkshire
A man paddles his small boat through the floodwaters in front of a house in Maisemore, Gloucestershire
A woman who owns Cotswold Canoe Hire in Lechlade-on-Thames, Gloucestershire, shared footage of her business where flood water was moving in ‘strong currents’.
Edith Cameron said: ‘I tried to empty the water, but realised there was no point because as soon as I got rid of water in one location, it would just come back up through the floor.’
She said it was still ‘completely flooded’ on Saturday, adding: ‘It’s really sad; it’s devastating.
‘It’s going to take quite a while for us to even think about clearing up as the water level is so high.’
An assessment of the premises is to take place on Monday, with the cost expected to be more than GBP20,000.
Continuous rain for 41 days has racked misery across the UK as the wake of Storm Henk ravaged towns and villages.
Leicestershire Police slammed the motorists after CCTV captured them stopping their cars, getting out, moving the signs out of the way and driving on.
A police spokesman said ‘This is the height of stupidity – these signs are put there for a purpose.
Flooding around the town of St Ives in Cambridgeshire on Saturday morning after the River Great Ouse burst its banks
Dog walkers take to Irvine Beach as temperatures dropped to minus 4 on sea front
Temperatures as low as minus 6C are predicted for the next few days with the UK Health Security Agency issuing a yellow cold weather alert
The Environment Agency issued hundreds of flood warnings (in red)
‘They warn drivers the road ahead is flooded and may be impassable and dangerous.’
It came after the force had already begged locals to ‘act responsibly’ after dozens of vehicles had to be rescued from the waters by the fire service.
Data from the Environment Agency showed almost every river in England has reached exceptionally high levels with some reaching record levels.
Heavy rain in Cambridgeshire meant rail replacement buses, in use due to flooding on the line, were unable to reach St Neots and Huntingdon railway stations for a spell overnight.
The company said Network Rail was working to repair damage caused by a landslip near Arlesey in Bedfordshire on Thursday, along with planned engineering works. They estimate affected lines will reopen by the start of Monday with a bus replacement service in place until then.
A 4×4 is left beached at the side of a road in the middle of the floodwater in Essex
The parking charge notice had been fixed to the black BMW, which was sitting in the dense floodwater
The whole road around the posh estate had been submerged by the murky water in Cookham, Berkshire
A column 11 of abandoned vehicles lay submerged on The A443 road near the small hamlet of Lindridge close to Tenbury Wells in Worcestershire
Fields and roads are flooded after the River Trent burst its banks with a major incident declared in Nottinghamshire
Flood waters from the River Ouse surround properties in Barcombe Mills, East Sussex
Great Western Railway said it had suffered ‘significant disruption’ to its services after flooding near Chipping Sodbury and the line between Swindon and Bristol Parkway is expected to remain closed through the weekend.
The line between Theale and Taunton is likely to remain closed on Saturday with services continuing on alternative routes.
South Western Railway, which saw much of its network affected on Friday including a landslip in Crewkerne, Somerset, said there was a ‘good service’ on Saturday.
Roads have been closed in and around Gloucester due to flooding and Gloucestershire police said a taxi driver had been reported for traffic offences on Friday night when he needed rescuing after becoming stuck when he attempted to drive through floodwater.
The Environment Agency said the River Severn was expected to have reached its peak at Gloucester Docks, and further upstream in Worcester, on Friday evening.
A slip road onto the A419 near Cirencester was closed on Saturday morning due to flooding, according to National Highways.
In Sheffield, firefighters were called to rescue a man who fell into the swollen River Don.
The Environment Agency said ‘significant river flooding impacts’ were expected on Saturday across parts of the Midlands on the River Trent and in Gloucester.
The River Great Ouse in Bedford town centre has burst its banks following heavy rainfall
Residents in a market town being rescued from major flooding after the waters rose to their doorsteps in Marlborough, Wiltshire
An overflowing river swells across a road after heavy rain in Cambridgeshire
Flooding in Marlborough, Wiltshire, where murky waters have swamped an entire road
It said areas of the South West on the River Avon would also be affected, adding that impacts are likely across much of England over the next five days because the ground is ‘completely saturated’.
Caroline Douglass, the agency’s flood director, said the Trent has been at ‘some of the highest levels we’ve seen in 24 years’.
Nottinghamshire County Council declared a major incident on Thursday due to the rising levels.
The Met Office predicted Saturday would bring a dry day to most areas with some sunny spells, although with a few showers along the coast and feeling cold with frost and fog patches overnight.
It said temperatures will drop to minus 4C in parts of rural south-west England on Saturday night and minus 6C in rural areas along the Welsh border in Shropshire and north Herefordshire on Sunday night.
Sunday is forecast to remain largely dry, except for the occasional shower in southeast England early in the day, with the cold weather continuing for much of the next week.
The UKHSA has issued a yellow cold weather alert for the vulnerable and elderly from 9am on Saturday until noon on January 12 with temperatures likely to be a few degrees below average across much of the UK, especially overnight, with ice an issue on wet ground.
Cars continue to drive through flood waters in Pulborough after the River Arun burst its banks
Cars plough through deep flood waters in Chertsey, Surrey, after the River Thames overflowed
A man paddle across flooded meadows around Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, following Storm Henk
Met Office chief forecaster Jason Kelly said: ‘As the prevailing weather conditions will be characterised by high pressure, a good deal of settled weather is likely.
‘Clearer skies and a marked reduction in precipitation are expected, although any showers that do occur are likely to be wintry in nature.
The severe weather has led to more calls for help from central Government to help council’s cope.
Senior leaders at the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Local Resilience Forum, which provides emergency planning to the area, called on the Government release funding to support residents affected by flooding.
They said if it did, measures would include up to GBP500 for flooded households, funding to improve homes and businesses’ resilience, reduced business and council tax rates, and business recovery grants.
Leicester deputy city mayor, Labour councillor Adam Clarke, said: ‘Leicester has experienced the worst flooding event I’ve ever seen, with river levels higher than they’ve been in 60 years.
‘More than 100 properties have had to be evacuated that we know of, and many families are today dealing with the catastrophic impact of flooding on their homes.
‘Along with local charities and other agencies we are providing as much support as we can, but we need Government funding to ensure that all residents and businesses affected get the help they need.’
Kayakers look on from flooded land as motorists drive along a partially flooded road after the River Arun burst its bank
Flood damage at the Cotswold Canoe Hire in Lechdale on Thames, with flooding expected to continue for days
A narrowboat lays across the front of a road bridge over the river Soar after being swept away during flooding in the aftermath of Storm Henk in Barrow On Soar
More than 300 homes are said to have been flooded in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.
Speaking to the media on the banks of the Trent in Nottingham on Friday afternoon, floods minister Robbie Moore said the Government had ‘absolutely’ provided enough money for flood prevention.
The Keighley MP said: ‘In those hard-hit areas we’ve experienced a huge amount of flooding, a huge amount of rain, not only here in Nottinghamshire but down in the Severn Valley in Gloucestershire, as well.’
Asked if there would be compensation for people affected by the flooding, Mr Moore said the Government was ‘absolutely looking at what measures we can put in place’.
He added that the amount of funding for flood resilience plans had been doubled ‘from GBP2.6 billion to GBP5.2 billion’.
Data from the EA shows almost every river in England to be exceptionally high with some rivers reaching their highest flow on record.
EA crews are reportedly operating temporary pumps, barriers and flood defences to minimise the impact of flooding across the country, and the agency said it has protected more than 45,000 properties.
A street flooded by the River Ouse after it burst its banks, in central York
People rescue a horse from floodwaters in Leicestershire following heavy downpours
Risks are forecast to reduce over the weekend but the EA urged the public check for high water levels in their area and sign up for free flood alerts.
Drivers were warned not to pass through floods, because just 30cm of water is enough to float a car.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak insisted people should be ‘reassured’ by the response to flooding, but Labour accused the Government of being ‘asleep at the wheel’ over flood warnings with leader Sir Keir Starmer vowing to make flood defences ‘fit for purpose’, writing on social media that ‘people’s lives shouldn’t be upended by extreme rain’.
Liberal Democrat spokeswoman for housing and communities Helen Morgan called on Mr Sunak to visit affected areas, saying: ‘The Prime Minister should see for himself the devastation caused by these floods.’
References
- ^ Eirian Jane Prosser (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Liberal Democrat (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Rishi Sunak (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Keir Starmer (www.dailymail.co.uk)