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UK weather: people are being forced to leave their homes as heavy rain and strong winds keep hitting England and Wales

Admin, The UK Times
28 Jan 2025 • 09:31 am
UK weather: people are being forced to leave their homes as heavy rain and strong winds keep hitting England and Wales

UK weather: people are being forced to leave their homes as heavy rain and strong winds keep hitting England and Wales

Severe weather warnings are still in effect as Somerset declares a major incident due to flooding of homes and businesses.

Parts of the UK are facing more disruptions from rain and wind, while hundreds of people are cleaning up after their homes and businesses were flooded.

Two severe weather warnings are still in place, and there are worries about more flooding in the south-west of England and parts of Wales.

Somerset has declared a major incident after flooding in towns like Somerton, Chard, South Petherton, and Ilminster. About 100 people had to evacuate, some were taken by boat.

In Cornwall, the small village of Trenarren, near St Austell, was cut off when a tree fell during strong winds, blocking the only road. Supplies were passed to residents over the tree.

A yellow severe weather warning for south-west and parts of southern England was expected to end at 10am on Tuesday. The weather was expected to have a mix of showers and sunshine, with strong winds, hail, and thunder in some areas.

A separate yellow warning was likely to stay in effect for south and mid-Wales until 9pm on Tuesday. This could cause flooding, which may lead to road closures and affect bus and train services.

On Tuesday morning, there were 31 flood warnings in England, meaning flooding was expected, including in areas like the River Avon near Bristol, the Axe at Axminster, and the River Severn at Tewkesbury. There were also 168 flood alerts, meaning flooding could happen.

In Wales, there were nine flood alerts, including for the River Wye in Monmouthshire and Powys, as well as the west coast of Anglesey.

The Environment Agency said flash floods had already occurred in Somerset because the ground was already wet. They were working to manage a large amount of water to prevent flooding in the Somerset moors.

Ben Lukey, a flood duty manager, said the impacts might continue into Wednesday and Thursday.

He said, “Teams from the Environment Agency are out helping to reduce the effects of flooding and will assist local authorities in their response. We ask people to stay away from fast-moving rivers and avoid driving through floodwater, as just 30cm of water can move your car.”

National Highways said one lane of the A303 was closed going west near Yeovil on Tuesday morning due to flooding.

The bad weather is caused by Storm Herminia, a low-pressure system named by meteorologists in Spain, which brought strong winds. Some parts of southern England experienced gusts of 84mph and nearly 60mm of rainfall on Monday.

Met Office meteorologist Marco Petagna said that Wednesday and Thursday would be mostly clear. “Things should improve a bit over the next few days,” he said.

Efforts are still underway in Northern Ireland and Scotland to restore power to people affected by Storm Éowyn over the weekend. Scotland’s first minister, John Swinney, said, “It’s a reminder that climate change is real and it’s getting stronger.”

Published: 28th January 2025

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