More rain's expected to cause further flooding
- 00:00:38
- ITN
More rain's expected to cause further flooding
Gale force winds, torrential rain and more snow are battering much of southern England and Wales. The Environment Agency has issued 83 flood warnings and some roads in Wiltshire, Somerset, Dorset, Cornwall, Hampshire, Surrey, Sussex and Essex were closed because of rising water. Forecasters said some areas had recorded close to their monthly average rainfall for February in just 24 hours and in Devon, the town of Kingsbridge was flooded. In Hampshire, five women had to be rescued by firefighters using an inflatable boat after they became stuck in their car in 2ft of floodwater in Oakcroft Lane at Fareham. And in East and West Sussex, emergency services dealt with around 160 weather-related calls. Firefighters were called out to assist three motorists stuck in their vehicles in floodwater in Bexhill, Selmeston and Westham near Eastbourne. Meanwhile, a band of snow stretching from south Wales into the Midlands left up to 3,000 homes without electricity in Gloucestershire, Worcestershire and Herefordshire. In Wales, the junction of the A4059 and the A470 south of Brecon and the A488 Monaughty to Knighton was affected. And at one point both River Severn road crossings on the England-Wales border were shut after vehicles were hit by falling ice. Overnight, Bristol Airport remained shut following heavy snow but was later able to reopen although some flights were delayed. Rail services were also badly hit. Flooding at Potters Bar in Hertfordshire led to delays for passengers on trains run by four companies - First Capital Connect, Grand Central, National Express East Coast and Hull Trains. South West Trains and CrossCountry passengers had to use buses between Bournemouth and Brockenhurst and Southampton due to flooding in the New Milton area of Hampshire. On the Isle of Wight's Island line, taxis replaced trains between Ryde Pier Head and Ryde St John's Road due to flooding, while flooding at Northolt Park in north west London led to delays to Chiltern Railways and Wrexham and Shropshire train company services. A landslip near Meopham in Kent led to 60-minute delays to some services run by the Southeastern company from Kent into London, while flooding near Pewsey in Wiltshire caused delays of up to an hour to First Great Western services between Westbury and Reading. Virgin Trains reduced the number of services it operates on the West Coast Main Line due to the bad weather, while ScotRail trains were unable to run between Bathgate and Livingston North due to flooding. To add to commuters' difficulties, late-running engineering work on the London Underground at Finchley Road in northwest London led to morning rush-hour delays on the Metropolitan, Circle and Hammersmith & City Tube lines.
ITN | February 10, 2009
