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Torrential rain caused chaos and misery across North Wales this afternoon.

Homes were flooded and buildings damaged as the downpours swept across the region accompanied by thunder and lightning.

The Abergele, Rhyl and Prestatyn areas were worst hit, with schools and leisure centres closed and a hospital and a GP surgery also affected.

Denbighshire council urged motorists to be extremely cautious when travelling in northern parts of the county, and a lane was closed on the A55 between junctions 23 and 24 near Abergele.

Driving conditions near Colwyn Bay and Bangor were difficult and training flights at RAF Valley were curtailed because of the bad weather.

Prestatyn Leisure Centre was closed last night while parts of the nearby Nova Centre and a leisure centre in Rhyl were also shut.

A doctors’ surgery in Dyserth was hit by a power cut and had to close early, and the entrance to Royal Alexandra Hospital, Rhyl was flooded, though health bosses said patients were not affected.

Two classrooms and a corridor were flooded at Prestatyn High School, which will be closed tomorrow. The town’s Ysgol Clawdd Offa and Ysgol Bryn Hedydd, Rhyl, will also be closed tomorrow.

(Image: Nate Orr)

Sarah Mayers was driving on the A55 to Llandudno when the storm hit at Mochdre, near Colwyn Bay. She said “I could not see a thing – it was scary.

“It was horrendous. I’ve never ever seen it like that.”

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In Abergele the torrential rain hit businesses and brought axle-deep water to the roads.

Parts of the high street were flooded shortly after 3pm when rainwater flowed down Chapel Street. A florist’s shop was completely flooded, and others at a lower level were also affected.

One resident said: “The flooding is horrendous. It was pretty scary. It’s really worrying for local businesses. It makes you realise how bad it must be when homes flood.”

The main road through the town remained open but traffic was said to be slow and “splashing through the puddles”.

A Denbighshire council spokesman said yesterday afternoon: “Staff from the council are working with the emergency services to respond to the situation and will monitor weather forecasts for the latest updates.”

(Image: Robert Parry Jones)

A police spokeswoman said the control room received several calls from people in Dyserth, Towyn and Abergele, and officers had been monitoring the situation on the roads.

North Wales Fire and Rescue Service said they had received about 20 calls for assistance soon after 3pm.

A spokeswoman said none of the incidents reported were serious and advice was given to most of the callers, but appliances attended some locations to reduce water levels.

(Image: David Powell)

Elsewhere in North Wales the Ffestiniog Railway’s Spooners Cafe and shop at Harbour Station, Porthmadog, were evacuated when the shock wave from a thunderclap caused the fire alarms to go off.

A spokesman said the incident happened at about 1.35pm.

Let us know how the weather affected you by using the comments section below