Storm Alex unleashes flood fury: Woman is rescued by husband after driving into deep water in Essex

84

View
comments

A woman was rescued by her husband after driving into four-foot deep water in Essex this morning while train lines have becomes submerged as Britain is battered by heavy downpours and 90mph gales from Storm Alex.

Persistent downpours have brought flooding and transport disruption, with more than 20 flood alerts in place.

There are amber weather warnings for rain in Wales, the West Midlands, south-west England and also parts of eastern Scotland today.

The Met Office said the last time amber warnings were issued for rain was in March, as forecasters warned of heavy rain across much of the country.

The places worst hit so far include parts of Exmoor, with 3.3in of rain recorded in 36 hours in Liscombe and 74.4mm recorded in Brendon Hill.

Flooding has hit train services in London and Scotland this morning, with services between St Pancras and Finsbury Park being cut as journey times are taking longer due to flooding on the track.

Commuters are also experiencing delays on the line between Potter’s Bar and Alexandra Palace. Meanwhile, many trains in storm-hit parts of Scotland will be ordered to run a maximum of 40mph in case they run into floods.

The speed limit is being imposed from 4pm this afternoon when weather forecasters are predicting torrential rain.

The high winds and rainfall will play havoc on motorists across the country, with Green Flag predicting one breakdown every seven seconds, BBC News reports.

Many areas of the country are forecast to see one to two inches of rain, with increased levels around 2.8-3.5in expected in higher areas of Wales and south-west England. 

Mark Newberry, commercial director at the breakdown cover provider, advised drivers to remain cautious and to ensure that they carried out the appropriate safety checks before travelling anywhere.

While RAC Breakdown spokesman Rod Dennis said that road conditions will be ‘miserable if not downright dangerous’ for drivers this weekend. 

A woman had to be rescued by her husband this morning after she drove into flooding on a road near Ingatestone in Essex, due to low visibility in the heavy rain.

He said they will need to be prepared for ‘an ugly mix’ of surface spray, gusty winds and more than likely some disruption on the roads.

Additionally, the Met Office has warned that some areas of the country could be hit with flooding, with weather warnings having been issued for large areas of the country.

Amber weather warnings have been put in place for Wales, the West Midlands, south-west England and parts of eastern Scotland. 

Met Office meteorologist Greg Dewhurst said: ‘It is going to be raining and horrible all day.

‘If you have to travel take extra time on your journey, the roads will be pretty treacherous at times with poor visibility due to the heavy rain.’

This is follows the damage already inflicted on parts of the country by Storm Alex yesterday as trees were trampled.        

More than a month’s worth of rain could be recorded in some places after Storm Alex ripped off a school roof and felled trees in Brittany, France.

The National Trust has closed Brownsea Island, famous as one of England’s remaining strongholds for our native red squirrels.

Thousands of visitors travel out to the island in the middle of Poole harbour in Dorset to see the ‘Squirrel Nutkins’ scampering among the pine trees.

With Storm Alex still raging, a National Trust spokesperson said: ‘We’ve made the decision to close the island today.

‘There’s another weather front blowing in and we need to put the safety and comfort of our visitors first. We hope to re-open as normal on Sunday. All those with pre booked tickets will be contacted as soon as possible.’

Met Office deputy chief meteorologist Laura Ellam said that the rainfall could prove ‘challenging and disruptive’.

Downpours are forecast every hour for parts of South East England until Monday lunchtime putting hundreds of thousands of families on flood alert, while commuters face a hellish return from work today.

A peak wind gust of 115mph was recorded in Brittany on Thursday night as Alex came ashore over north-western France, which matches the peak UK gust for the Great Storm of 1987 – although the French record is 138mph. 

The top speed in the UK yesterday reached 71mph. The storm was named Alex by French forecasters because it originated on the Continent, but it would have been called Aiden if it was named by UK and Irish forecasters. 

Widespread power cuts have hit southern England, with Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks recording unplanned outages in more than 20 areas including Portsmouth, Southampton and towns east of Reading. 

Western Power Distribution has also recorded incidents in Devon, Cornwall, Dorset and Somerset. In addition, outages affected nearly 1,230 homes in Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire and 550 in Crawley, West Sussex. 

Power board engineers were working in increasingly atrocious conditions to restore supplies but with winds increasing in strength, trees were at risk of being blown on to overhead cables. 

Runners tackling 26.2 miles of the London Marathon on Sunday are likely to face rain and strong winds. While elite runners will race on a looped course, 45,000 other participants will choose their own route tracked by an app. 

But the Met Office does not expect it to be the wettest marathon ever. That record was in 1983 when 0.9in of rain fell in Greenwich, while the windiest was in 1986 when 35mph was recorded at Kew Gardens.  

Yesterday’s weather warning covers southern counties of England from Cornwall to Kent as well as South Wales and Herefordshire until 8pm. By 8am on Friday, Alex was centred close to the Channel Island of Alderney.

Up to two inches of rain could fall, while gale force winds are set to reach 65mph on exposed coasts and 55mph inland. The Met Office is warning of flooding and ‘dangerous’ driving conditions due to spray and high winds. 

In the wake of the storm, a second system is due to bring more heavy rain over the weekend. This has triggered a second set of weather warnings which cover almost all of England, all of Wales and the eastern side of Scotland. 

The warnings last from 3am tomorrow until 6pm on Sunday – and include a ‘danger to life’ alert due to the chance of ‘fast-flowing or deep floodwater’. 

‘There is a small chance some communities could be cut off,’ the Met Office states. It also said there is also a risk of landslides and ‘very difficult driving conditions’.

Met Office spokesman Bonnie Diamond said: ‘Unusually, the weather system moving in on Saturday is coming from the East, rather than the South West.

‘It means eastern counties which are usually more sheltered will bear the brunt of the system. Over the weekend, some places could see more than the average rainfall for the whole of October.’

The wettest conditions are set to be in eastern Scotland but very heavy rain is also expected on the high ground of Wales and South West England.

Between 4-5in of rain is expected in the worst-hit places, with one to two inches elsewhere. The normal average rainfall for the whole of October is 5in in the UK and 3.8in in England.

The most significant rain is due tomorrow before turning more showery on Sunday but some places could still see heavy downpours.

Chief meteorologist at the Met Office, Steve Ramsdale described the forecast as a ‘miserable end to the working week’ and warned of gales before another band of wet weather arrives for larger swathes of the country.

He added: ‘As the strong winds and rain associated with Storm Alex clear away from Britain later on Friday, another low-pressure system moves towards the UK from the east bringing further very heavy rain and strong winds to many over the weekend.’

The Met Office’s concerns were echoed by the Environment Agency, which said: ‘Heavy rain will bring the potential for surface water flooding and perhaps some river flooding across the south of England on Friday.

‘More widespread and persistent heavy rain across much of England will bring the potential for further river and surface water flooding over the weekend.

‘We urge people to stay away from swollen rivers and not to drive though flood water, it is often deeper than it looks and just 30cm of flowing water is enough to float your car.’

Miss Diamond added: ‘On Monday it is due to become a little less unsettled and windy. There is still due to be a chance of showers but it certainly won’t be as wet. The weather is due to stay unsettled into next week.’ 

And RAC breakdown spokesman Rod Dennis said: ‘Heavy rain will make road conditions miserable if not downright dangerous for drivers this weekend, and they’ll need to be prepared for an ugly mix of surface spray, gusty winds and more than likely some disruption on the roads.

‘Floods are also a possibility so drivers should remember never to attempt to drive through water unless they know for sure that it’s shallow enough. For drivers who are unlucky enough to breakdown in the horrid conditions, our patrols will be working around the clock to get them moving again.’

Looking further ahead, the Met Office said unsettled weather is forecast to continue until the middle of the month.

Its forecast states: ‘An unsettled picture is likely for this period, with all parts of the country seeing showery spells as well as times of more prolonged rainfall.

‘Southern and western areas are expected to see the worst of these conditions with the most frequent and heaviest rainfall. Drier and calmer conditions could be seen at times, but likely only for short interludes.

‘Largely windy for most of the country during this period, with a risk of gales at times, particularly along western and south-western coasts. Overall, it is likely to feel rather cold.’

A drier spell, with the chance of sunny days but fog and frost by night, is not expected until the second half of the coming month.

** Have you taken any photographs or videos of Storm Alex? Email: pictures@mailonline.co.uk **