Post by KNOWTHIS on Jan 11, 2007 19:33:53 GMT -5
express.lineone.net/news_detail.html?sku=1031
BRITAIN is on a major flood alert today after the Met Office issued a severe weather warning for the entire country.
Gales gusting up to 70mph are expected to batter everywhere from southern England to Scotland.
They will be accompanied by torrential rain, with up to an inch falling in some parts. This will increase the risk of further flooding – as many areas are still mopping up after the downpour early yesterday.
Days of heavy showers, with rainfall 23 per cent above normal for the first week of January, have left the ground saturated and many rivers have already burst their banks.
At lunchtime yesterday there were 36 flood warnings in place, advising that flooding of homes and businesses is expected.
There were 81 flood watches, where low-lying areas and roads are at risk.
Today’s heavy rain, with more forecast for tomorrow and Saturday, is likely to spark more warnings – even severe flood warnings, where there is “extreme danger to life and property”.
The Environment Agency said last night that the main areas of concernn are the River Severn in Shropshire, the Conwy, the lower Dee in North Wales and at Chester, and the Ouse in York.
Flood alerts were also issued for the Nene in Peterborough and the Great Ouse in St Neots, Cambs, and for stretches of the Yare and the Great Ouse in Norfolk.
A spokesman said: “There’s definitely a possibility of flooding in most areas of the country.”
The Highways Agency urged drivers to take care. It said: “Sudden crosswinds and heavy rain may pose a hazard with standing water and spray on many routes.”
The Met Office said: “It will be very windy overnight and into Thursday. More wet and windy weather will move in over the whole UK over the next couple of days.
“London could see gusts of up to 60mph during the morning rush hour accompanied by very heavy rain which will have swept in overnight.
“Central and southern England will be worst affected. We can expect to see winds gathering to up to 65 or even 70mph.
Winds will ease there in the afternoon, but will gather force in the northern half of the country in time for the evening rush hour. Northern England and Scotland will have gusts of up to 70mph, if not stronger.
“The central lowlands of Scotland can expect to bear the brunt of the wind as it races through that valley corridor.
“It’s a very unsettled scene moving forwards into the weekend. We are issuing early severe weather warnings covering most of the UK for strong winds and heavy rain.
“I would advise everyone to stay tuned to forecasts over the next few days. This weather pattern is extremely mobile and could change constantly.”
Temperatures are expected to remain mild, with overnight temperatures in London similar to those typical for July.
Yesterday parts of Milton Keynes, Bucks, were under up to 4ft of water, while fire crews were called to deal with flooding in Witney, Leafield and Curbridge in west Oxfordshire.
Schoolchildren on their way to Witney Community primary school had to be carried across floodwater to get to class.
Motorists were left stranded and rivers burst their banks across parts of Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Essex.
A landslip left several inches of deep mud across the B1040 at Papworth Everard in Cambs. Guests at a hotel in St Ives, Cambs, woke to find the car park under water.
Firefighters rescued people from their cars after they were stuck in floods at Thornborough, north Buckinghamshire.
In Wiltshire, flood waters cut off roads and trapped drivers in their vehicles.
One driver had to be led to safety after his car cut out in deep water at a ford in the village of Norton, near Chippenham.
And an hour later a fire crew had to rescue a motorist from a bridge two miles away when rising floodwater on the A429 near Hullavington submerged his Land Rover up to its roof. Police closed the road because of the conditions.
In Tewkesbury, Gloucs, the Severn burst its banks, covering acres of fields and causing more traffic chaos.
Roads were closed and some drivers had to push their stricken cars through knee-deep river water.
The village of Ham, near Taunton, Somerset, was cut off by rising flood water. In York, areas of the famous racecourse were under a foot of water, while Snowdonia has already seen six inches of rain – almost half the month’s normal rainfall – in just three days.
There was also chaos on the railways after lines were flooded, delaying many train services.
But the constant wet weather could bring one ray of hope – an end at last to water restrictions caused by one of the worst droughts in 100 years.
The Environment Agency said levels in most reservoirs are now near or above average for this time of year. Underground aquifers, which provide 70 per cent of the water in the South, are also recharging.
Sutton and East Surrey water company, which imposed the only drought order banning non-essential use of water last year, said it hopes to lift its hosepipe ban soon.
A spokesman said yesterday: “Aquifers are starting to come up. We hope we will be in a position to consider lifting restrictions at some point. We are reviewing this on a constant basis.”
About 13million people across the South are still living with hosepipe and sprinkler bans.
BRITAIN is on a major flood alert today after the Met Office issued a severe weather warning for the entire country.
Gales gusting up to 70mph are expected to batter everywhere from southern England to Scotland.
They will be accompanied by torrential rain, with up to an inch falling in some parts. This will increase the risk of further flooding – as many areas are still mopping up after the downpour early yesterday.
Days of heavy showers, with rainfall 23 per cent above normal for the first week of January, have left the ground saturated and many rivers have already burst their banks.
At lunchtime yesterday there were 36 flood warnings in place, advising that flooding of homes and businesses is expected.
There were 81 flood watches, where low-lying areas and roads are at risk.
Today’s heavy rain, with more forecast for tomorrow and Saturday, is likely to spark more warnings – even severe flood warnings, where there is “extreme danger to life and property”.
The Environment Agency said last night that the main areas of concernn are the River Severn in Shropshire, the Conwy, the lower Dee in North Wales and at Chester, and the Ouse in York.
Flood alerts were also issued for the Nene in Peterborough and the Great Ouse in St Neots, Cambs, and for stretches of the Yare and the Great Ouse in Norfolk.
A spokesman said: “There’s definitely a possibility of flooding in most areas of the country.”
The Highways Agency urged drivers to take care. It said: “Sudden crosswinds and heavy rain may pose a hazard with standing water and spray on many routes.”
The Met Office said: “It will be very windy overnight and into Thursday. More wet and windy weather will move in over the whole UK over the next couple of days.
“London could see gusts of up to 60mph during the morning rush hour accompanied by very heavy rain which will have swept in overnight.
“Central and southern England will be worst affected. We can expect to see winds gathering to up to 65 or even 70mph.
Winds will ease there in the afternoon, but will gather force in the northern half of the country in time for the evening rush hour. Northern England and Scotland will have gusts of up to 70mph, if not stronger.
“The central lowlands of Scotland can expect to bear the brunt of the wind as it races through that valley corridor.
“It’s a very unsettled scene moving forwards into the weekend. We are issuing early severe weather warnings covering most of the UK for strong winds and heavy rain.
“I would advise everyone to stay tuned to forecasts over the next few days. This weather pattern is extremely mobile and could change constantly.”
Temperatures are expected to remain mild, with overnight temperatures in London similar to those typical for July.
Yesterday parts of Milton Keynes, Bucks, were under up to 4ft of water, while fire crews were called to deal with flooding in Witney, Leafield and Curbridge in west Oxfordshire.
Schoolchildren on their way to Witney Community primary school had to be carried across floodwater to get to class.
Motorists were left stranded and rivers burst their banks across parts of Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Essex.
A landslip left several inches of deep mud across the B1040 at Papworth Everard in Cambs. Guests at a hotel in St Ives, Cambs, woke to find the car park under water.
Firefighters rescued people from their cars after they were stuck in floods at Thornborough, north Buckinghamshire.
In Wiltshire, flood waters cut off roads and trapped drivers in their vehicles.
One driver had to be led to safety after his car cut out in deep water at a ford in the village of Norton, near Chippenham.
And an hour later a fire crew had to rescue a motorist from a bridge two miles away when rising floodwater on the A429 near Hullavington submerged his Land Rover up to its roof. Police closed the road because of the conditions.
In Tewkesbury, Gloucs, the Severn burst its banks, covering acres of fields and causing more traffic chaos.
Roads were closed and some drivers had to push their stricken cars through knee-deep river water.
The village of Ham, near Taunton, Somerset, was cut off by rising flood water. In York, areas of the famous racecourse were under a foot of water, while Snowdonia has already seen six inches of rain – almost half the month’s normal rainfall – in just three days.
There was also chaos on the railways after lines were flooded, delaying many train services.
But the constant wet weather could bring one ray of hope – an end at last to water restrictions caused by one of the worst droughts in 100 years.
The Environment Agency said levels in most reservoirs are now near or above average for this time of year. Underground aquifers, which provide 70 per cent of the water in the South, are also recharging.
Sutton and East Surrey water company, which imposed the only drought order banning non-essential use of water last year, said it hopes to lift its hosepipe ban soon.
A spokesman said yesterday: “Aquifers are starting to come up. We hope we will be in a position to consider lifting restrictions at some point. We are reviewing this on a constant basis.”
About 13million people across the South are still living with hosepipe and sprinkler bans.