VIDEO: Emergency services in England struggle in aftermath of Storm Desmond

Emergency services in the north of England are becoming increasingly stretched as the army has been drafted in to help cope with floods in the aftermath of Storm Desmond.

Mon, 07 Dec, 2015 - 00:00

Fears are growing over the safety of an elderly man who police believe fell into a swollen river in Cumbria, and the weather has already claimed the life of a 90-year-old man in London.

Strong winds and heavy rain tore through Britain and a major incident was declared in Cumbria, the worst affected county.

Concerns are growing over an incident at the River Kent in Kendal as police wait for an underwater search team to help them search for the elderly male believed to have fallen in the water.

Rescue and evacuation missions, which began on Saturday, continue in areas which have seen more than a month’s rainfall over the past 24 hours.

A 90-year-old man lost his life after he was believed to have been blown into the side of a moving bus by a gust of wind, near Finchley Central Tube station, north London, a Scotland Yard spokesman said.

Carlisle remains one of the most severely affected areas as water levels continued to rise past the expected peak time of 9.15am on Sunday.

Soldiers have been deployed to support local emergency services by helping to move people from their homes in streets where cars have been almost entirely submerged.

West Midlands Fire Service has also sent firefighters and specialist equipment to the county and its control room staff are helping to answer the high number of calls from their Birmingham office.

In Eamont Bridge in Cumbria, 150 people were rescued by the Coastguard from a flooded caravan park. The village of Braithwaite became completely cut off when its main bridge collapsed as the river burst its banks.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs minister Rory Stewart, who is also the Tory MP for Penrith and the Border, said flooding in his constituency has been “the worst that anybody’s experienced” and acknowledged water had “overtopped” existing flood defences.