Large parts of UK on flood alert

Large swathes of Britain remain on flood alert with more heavy and persistent downfalls forecast to further dampen the summer season.

Storms that brought flash flooding to parts of Wales and Shropshire yesterday showed little sign of relenting overnight and are expected to extend into the South East today.

Up to 10mm of rain an hour fell in parts of Wales, the Midlands and East Anglia - prompting the Environment Agency (EA) to issue a number of fresh flood alerts.

A total of eight flood warnings are in place – six in the South West, one in the Midlands and one in the Anglia region – with 55 flood alerts across England and Wales. Seventeen of the alerts were issued across the Midlands last night as storms moved in.

The A49 in Shropshire was closed yesterday following intense rainfall, while flash floods hit parts of north Powys in Wales after torrential rain.

An EA spokesman said: “The Environment Agency is urging people across central and eastern England to remain vigilant as heavy thunderstorms are forecast to affect large swathes of the country.

“Locally intense showers falling on already saturated ground could lead to surface water flooding and possible river flooding from fast responding rivers, particularly across parts of the Midlands and East Anglia.

“The Met Office warns that many areas are expected to see between 20 and 30 mm of rain, but some parts could see up to 60mm – almost a month’s worth of rain - in just a few hours.”

The agency said there was also a continued risk of flooding from rising groundwater across parts of Dorset as local drainage systems struggle to cope with the rainfall.

The Met Office has issued a yellow warning of heavy rain for parts of the Midlands, southern and eastern England and Wales.

People are being urged not to drive or walk through flood waters which can be dirty, dangerous and full of hidden debris.

The wettest April to June on record, followed by more heavy rain so far this month, has caused widespread – and in some cases, repeated – flooding.