UK floods latest: ‘Devastating’ floods cause train and traffic chaos as 150 weather warnings still in place

A father pulled his baby son to safety from the window of his car after his vehicle became submerged in deep flood water during Storm Bert.

Andre Randles was on his way to Todmorden in West Yorkshire on Saturday, when he entered a sudden dip which saw flood water seep into his car, which was carrying his 11-month-old son Luca.

“As soon as I saw danger, saw the water coming into the car and we were no longer floating and starting to sink, something switched in me,” Mr Randles told the BBC.

“I thought I needed to get out and get Luca out,” he added. The 22-year-old ended up carrying his son over his head while he waded through chest-high water.

“I was trying to get him somewhere safe as quickly as possible.”

Welsh first minister Eluned Morgan said it had been a “really difficult weekend” and that the flooding was “absolutely devastating” for those involved.

A major incident was declared in the Rhondda Cynon Taf region of south Wales on Sunday, with between 200 and 300 properties in the area affected by flooding from the storm.

“It’s been a really difficult weekend and I’d like to thank the emergency services for all the support they’re giving to the people affected,” she said.

“I think this is the second time that many of those have suffered as a result of the storm. There’s been huge investments since the last storm hit, so we’ve managed to protect lots more properties than last time. But obviously this is absolutely devastating, just before Christmas for those people who have been impacted.”

Storm Bert is “only just slowly pulling away” from the UK on Monday, meaning an “unsettled start to the day”, according to the Met Office website.

In an online forecast, Met Office meteorologist Greg Dewhurst said: “The day ahead is generally a mixture of sunny spells and showers.”

Frequent showers are expected in Scotland, Northern Ireland, northern England, Wales and the West Country, with sunnier, drier weather across parts of the Midlands and south-east England, he continued.

It will be “a pretty windy afternoon” across the country, with gusts of around 30mph to 40mph which may reach 50mph in parts of Scotland, Mr Dewhurst added.

London and south-east England will experience a top temperature of 11C, with highs of 7C expected in Scotland.

Hundreds of thousands of travellers were unable to complete their journeys around the UK at the weekend due to severe disruption caused by Storm Bert.

Key rail links were closed and around 400 flights serving UK airports were either cancelled or diverted on Sunday.

The damage caused by the low-pressure system is continuing to cause major problems on the transport network, with rail passengers particularly hard hit.

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Tens of thousands of airline passengers are out of position after hundreds of flights were cancelled and diverted on Sunday.

According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, at least 388 UK flights were cancelled on Sunday. In addition, London Gatwick and Heathrow both saw large numbers of “go-arounds” (when pilots decide to abort their landing) and subsequent diversions.

London Heathrow was hardest hit, with at least 234 cancellations – most of them on British Airways, which has over half the slots at the UK’s biggest airport.

London City airport was effectively closed to many arrivals during the afternoon and evening. A spokesperson for BA said: “To comply with air traffic restrictions imposed on us due to adverse winter weather conditions caused by Storm Bert, we have had to reduce our schedule at London Heathrow and London City Airport.

“We’re sorry that some of our customers’ journeys have been disrupted as a result of these restrictions and we’re offering them rebooking or refund options.”

Almost all flights are operating as normal; some overnight long-haul arrivals are late because the outbound flights were delayed, and odd short-haul departures such as SAS to Stockholm are cancelled because the aircraft could not get in on Sunday night.

National Highways said the A5 in Northamptonshire is closed in both directions between the A43 (Towcester) and A422/A508 (Old Stratford) due to “severe flooding” in the area.

Specialist contractors are working at the scene to clear the flood water from the carriageway.

The M32 in Bristol was closed in both directions between Junction 1 (Stoke Gifford) and Junction 19 (M4) from late on Sunday night.

It was fully reopened at around 5am on Monday.

The A66 between North Yorkshire and Cumbria was closed to high-sided and other vulnerable vehicles in both directions between the A1M (Scotch Corner) and the M6 due to strong winds, but the restriction was lifted at around 6.30am.

Great Western Railway said it has suspended services on “all key routes” due to flooding and fallen trees.

The operator’s network runs between London Paddington and both south-west England and south Wales.

It said: “GWR has suspended train services on all key routes after flooding and fallen trees have blocked access at key locations on the Great Western network.

“We’re sorry for the disruption to journeys. Network Rail and GWR teams are working hard across the network and will carry out inspections to reopen lines as quickly as possible.

“Disruption is expected to last until at least the end of the day on Monday.

“Customers are advised not to travel and check for the latest updates and GWR.com.”

These images show the extreme weather Storm Bert is bringing across the UK.

The named storm has brought nearly a month’s worth of rainfall in less than 48 hours, with winds of up to 82mph recorded.

The government has updated its flood checking service to see where is most at risk across the UK.

There are currently 160 flood warnings in place, with one marked as severe and posing danger to life. This is at the River Nene at the Billing Aquadrome and nearby business parks.

Those living in areas marked with flood warnings are advised to act now to protect themselves. Those in areas where there are flood alerts are advised to be prepared.

For the full list of flood warnings and alerts, and government advice, you can use their flood checking service.