Almost 150 flood warnings remain in place across Britain after more heavy rain fell on Thursday night. While the Met Office is forecasting the rains to finally ease off on Friday, heavy downpours overnight have increased the number of flood warnings in effect.



A flooded home in Fishlake village.

The Environment Agency (EA) has posted 147 flood warnings – in which immediate action is required – with 145 in England and two in Wales

Houses have been inundated by flood water and about 350 residents have been forced to leave their homes.

There are also 174 flood alerts, warning people to be prepared for possible flooding. The warnings and alerts cover most of England. They are in force across the south of the country from Cornwall to Kent, from Chester in the north-west to areas north of Norwich and regions to the east of York, and most parts in between.

The EA says it is working with emergency responders and local authorities to protect people and properties in Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire.

Paul Sims and Chloe Facer at Paul’s home. Chloe said, ‘I panicked and rushed. Got the dogs together first and picked everything up and took it upstairs. It’s the first time I’ve experienced anything like this.’

Boris Johnson faced heavy criticism during a visit to affected areas in South Yorkshire on Wednesday. The prime minister later paid a visit to Fishlake, where he told reporters: “We will get people back on their feet.” On Tuesday, he announced relief funding would be made available for those affected by the floods and said funding for local councils to help affected households would be made available.

The interior of Paul Sim’s family home.

The Met Office’s Friday morning forecast for the UK was for “rain at times, but not as heavy as recent days”. It forecast “further rain at times” for Saturday in England and southern Scotland.



Wayne Howsam outside his home. ‘I have no idea what caused this. This has not happened in this village for over100 years, so we need answers to be fair. I think they’ve been putting in flood defences in Sheffield which is about half an hour away. They’ve spent their money there and it’s created a problem further down the river. That’s what we’re thinking. Whether I’m right I don’t know but this has never ever happened in 100 years so, what do you say?’

Almost 50mm of rain fell near Tal-y-Maes, Wales, in the 24 hours to Thursday evening, and the 49.6mm recorded in Brecknockshire was almost matched by Ross-on-Wye in Herefordshire, which had 48.8mm over the same period.

Five severe flood warnings were issued after the river Don first burst its banks.

The rain arrived alongside cold temperatures in some parts, as parts of the south-west of England did not manage to climb above 2C on Thursday, but flood water remains the primary concern.

Machines were pumping 2.5 tonnes of water a second out of the Yorkshire village of Fishlake, according to the EA, as British army soldiers helped reinforce flood defences.

Andrew Benford in his flooded home. ‘We’ve had a lot of rain this last week or two. But it’s never happened like this before in this village. So, we think it’s been sent down further up the river, a lot of us in the village do, to take pressure off further up Sheffield and Rotherham, we think. But I’m not saying that’s true, that’s just my theory.’

Downpours last week meant several areas from Yorkshire to Derbyshire and the East Midlands were deluged with one month’s worth of rain in a day

Meanwhile, emergency services across England warned people to be careful and not drive through deep flood water as rivers continued to swell.



Another government Cobra meeting was held on Thursday evening to co-ordinate the relief operation.

Joseph Howsam: ‘In 2007, the same thing happened, obviously not as bad, but they were ready. There were pumps, there were sandbags, there was everything ready. We didn’t get sandbags until it was literally coming in the door. And there’s been no pumps or anything to help. It’s only the community which has helped each other and the rescue teams all come out but …’

The leaders of councils in Doncaster, Rotherham, Sheffield, Barnsley, Bassetlaw and Kirklees have written to the communities secretary, Robert Jenrick, warning of “considerable and lasting damage” and urging more funding to help them cope with future flooding.