More than 90 Environment Agency flood warnings remained active on Saturday morning amid fears flooding will continue throughout the weekend before the weather is set to turn colder
Police today declared a major incident in South Wales after “severe and widespread” flooding turned roads into rivers, leaving houses, shops and cars underwater.
Emergency services and local rescue teams carried out evacuations of residents in Monmouth after a threat-to-life warning was issued at 1.30am on Saturday morning. It came after Storm Claudia lashed down overnight on large parts of England, Wales and Scotland, with a month’s worth of rain in just 24 hours in some areas.
Monmouth resident Kim Kaos said: “At 2am this morning my town flooded. It looks like the flood defence walls have either broken or been topped. The Monnow is rampant in the town. There a guy trapped in an ally opposite. This is what climate collapse looks like.”
Monmouthshire county councillor Martin Newell, who owns a business in Monmouth, admitted he had been left “absolutely heartbroken” after witnessing the damage. Speaking about flood defences which were meant to protect the town, he said: “I haven’t seen it this bad in Monmouth for 20 to 30 years.
“We need to find out what’s happened here, do a full investigation and make sure this doesn’t happen again. We’ve got a big job ahead. We’re going to clean this up and we will get it done.”
South Wales Fire and Rescue Service area manager Matt Jones said: “This is a large-scale incident, and our crews and partners have been working tirelessly through the night and into today to help those affected.
“Teams have been carrying out rescues, evacuations, welfare checks, and moving residents from affected areas to places of safety. I want to thank everyone involved for the professionalism and care they continue to show in very difficult circumstances.”
More than 90 Environment Agency flood warnings remained active on Saturday morning amid fears flooding will continue throughout the weekend. Natural Resources Wales imposed four severe flood warnings after fast-moving water and blocked routes created “challenging” conditions.
And Monmouthshire County Council urged people not to drive in the area due to “the severity of the flooding in Monmouth and the ongoing operation there”. Wales First Minister Eluned Morgan and Deputy First Minister Huw Irranca-Davies thanked the emergency services for “working tirelessly in dreadful conditions to keep people safe”, adding: “It is often at times of hardship that we see the best of people”.
Monmouth MP Catherine Fookes added: “The scenes across the county are shocking and I can only imagine how devastating this is for residents whose homes and businesses have been affected. Monmouthshire has a fantastic community spirit and I know we will continue to pull together and support one another as the clean-up begins.”
Meanwhile, in Herefordshire, the River Dulas Brook burst its banks in the village of Ewes Harold, causing devastating flooding to houses and businesses, including a post office. In Birmingham, a man had to be rescued from his van after becoming stranded in deep water. In Cheshire, winds of up to 70mph caused trees to fall down over roads.
And in Maryport, Cumbria, aerial pictures showed a road cut off after flooding made a road impassable. National Rail warned passengers in both England and Wales to check before they travel amid reports of “cancellations and significant delays”, including in Worcestershire and between London Paddington and Bristol.
Christmas light switch-ons were cancelled in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter, as well as in villages in Warwickshire and South Yorkshire and a Winter Wonderland in Norwich scrapped its launch. The bad weather is now set to be followed by below-freezing temperatures, with a yellow alert for cold weather issued for Monday.
The UK Health Security Agency put out the warning for parts of the Midlands and northern England from Monday, with sleet and snow forecast for north-facing coasts and upland areas. The cold weather alert is in place from 8am on Monday until 8am on Friday November 21 and covers the North East, North West and Yorkshire, The Humber, the East Midlands and the West Midlands.
Forecasters added snow is likely around Dumfries, Scotland, by Wednesday. Met Office meteorologist Honor Criswick said: “Overnight on Saturday and throughout the course of Sunday, we will start to see winds changing to be a bit more northerly, introducing a lot of Arctic air.
“Clouds will clear throughout the course of the day so it will allow for some sunshine, but with it, it’s going to be turning much colder. I think people are really going to notice a chill into Sunday and feeling cold in many areas. Things are starting to turn less stormy, a bit brighter, but it’s going to be feeling a lot colder and, as we head into next week, we’ll see a continuation of that.”
