Vigilance urged as flooding expected to continue, Environment Agency warns

Flooding is expected to continue on Saturday and the public should “remain vigilant”, the Environment Agency (EA) has warned.

By 6.15pm on Saturday, 190 flood warnings and 210 flood alerts were in place in England – and significant flooding was forecast in parts of the Midlands, Lincolnshire and on the River Thames.

More than 1,800 properties have flooded due to saturated ground, the EA said, adding that the impact of high water levels are likely to continue over the next five days, and many rivers will remain elevated.

Cold weather is also forecast from Saturday.

Flooded households can now apply for up to £500 to help cover the cost of repairs, the Government has said.

Katharine Smith, flood duty manager at the Environment Agency, said: “Significant river flooding impacts are still expected today and over the next few days across parts of the river Thames in Oxfordshire as well as the River Trent near Nottingham, and the River Severn, including Gloucester.

“The prolonged wet weather and intense rainfall has led to flooding impacts and our thoughts are with all of those affected.”

A father who spent 11 years developing his business from scratch said it is “heart-breaking” to see the damage caused by flooding that hit his caravan park on Wednesday.

David Walters, 51, worked as a “one man band” to develop Cresslands Touring Park, South Lincolnshire.

On January 3, flood water left everything “drenched”, before receding and breaking the cap off the borehole, which supplies water to the whole site and Mr Walters’ home nearby.

He told the PA news agency: “It flooded a couple of Christmases ago, but historically the river (near the site) has never been above 1.5m. But I had this horrendous feeling the night before because of the saturation and the atrocious weather we’ve had through December and into January.

“As you’re seeing, water rising in such a rapid way heading towards you, you’re almost weirdly paralysed.

“I was just staring at certain elements of my garden, for example, and just watching it creep up and just praying and hoping it didn’t hit my home, which it thankfully didn’t, but everything else got completely drenched.”

He added there has been “no water running” to anything on site since Wednesday due to damage done to the borehole, and the aftermath of the flooding has been clear to see.

“Little play areas that I’ve made out of wood which were at the front of the site are now at the back of the site,” he said

“Debris off the fields that the water has washed through is completely strewn all over everything and everything stinks to high heaven.

“Because there’s no running water, I can’t clean or mop anything.”

An assessment of the premises is to take place on Monday, with the cost expected to be more than £20,000.

A woman who owns a canoe hire outlet in Lechlade-on-Thames in the Cotswolds, Gloucestershire, shared footage of her business where flood water was moving in “strong currents”.

Edith Cameron visited Cotswold Canoe Hire on Friday and there was “already water there”.

The 50-year-old told PA: “I tried to empty the water, but realised there was no point because as soon as I got rid of water in one location, it would just come back up through the floor.

She said it was still “completely flooded” on when she returned on Saturday, adding: “It’s really sad; it’s devastating.

“It’s going to take quite a while for us to even think about clearing up as the water level is so high.”

The Department for Environmental and Rural Affairs (Defra) said the Government has released Flood Recovery Framework grants for communities affected by Storm Henk that started on January 2.

Significantly impacted households and businesses could receive 100% off their council tax and business rates for at least three months.

Grants of up to £2,500 are said to be available to eligible small-to-medium sized businesses, £5,000 could be given to property owners making their buildings more resilient to future floods, and farmers who have suffered uninsurable damage to their land are able to apply for £25,000.

Data from the EA shows almost every river in England to be exceptionally high with some rivers reaching their highest flow on record.

EA crews are reportedly operating temporary pumps, barriers and flood defences to minimise the impact of flooding across the country, and the agency said it has protected more than 45,000 properties.

Risks are forecast to reduce over the weekend but the EA urged the public check for high water levels in their area and sign up for free flood alerts.

Drivers were warned not to pass through floods, because just 30cm of water is enough to float a car.