More wet weather this weekend brings ongoing risk of flooding (8 January 2016)
Environment Agency warns of ongoing flood risk for parts of northern England and along parts of the River Severn.
Environment Agency flood community support officers are visiting areas affected by flooding to offer help and advice.
Read Winter flooding 2015: community support for advice and current information.
With more rain forecast across the north of England through the weekend, the Environment Agency is warning of an ongoing flood risk for parts of northern England and along parts of the River Severn in Worcestershire and Gloucestershire.
Environment Agency teams are out in communities, taking action with local authorities, checking and maintaining flood defences, clearing trash screens and blockages in rivers, and monitoring water levels. As part of ongoing recovery efforts, Environment Agency pumps continue to be used in parts of Yorkshire and Lancashire to pump away flood water. With more rain expected, demountable flood barriers remain in place on the River Severn at Bewdley and Shrewsbury.
With ground still saturated and river levels remaining high in many areas, communities are asked to remain vigilant and to check flood warnings. As of 12:30pm on 8 January 2016 there are 19 flood warnings and 111 alerts in place across England. Flood warnings are updated on the Environment Agency website every 15 minutes. There are no severe warnings in place.
Jonathan Day, Flood Risk Manager at the Environment Agency, said:
“Our focus is on offering ongoing support to those communities that are still dealing with the terrible impacts of flooding as we continue with our recovery and repair work.
“With more rain expected this weekend after a December that was the wettest month on record, we are asking people to remain vigilant as, with the ground saturated and river levels still high, even normal amounts of rain can cause a flood risk.
“We are supporting local authorities and advise all local residents to stay away from swollen rivers and flood water. We urge people not to drive through flood water: just 30cm of flowing water is enough to move your car. People should check their flood risk and keep up to date with the latest situation, call Floodline on 0345 988 1188 or follow @EnvAgency and #floodaware on Twitter for the latest flood updates.”