Storm Christoph news – live: Flood warnings in Manchester, Wales, Yorkshire as hundreds evacuated from homes
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Your support makes all the difference.Widespread flooding across England and Wales has led to hundreds of people having been evacuated from their homes overnight, with “danger to life” warnings in place.
People living in parts of Manchester, North Wales and Merseyside have been affected and around 2,000 homes were evacuated.
There are currently over 200 flood warnings in place for the UK. Several of them are for severe flooding with a “danger to life.”
Yellow weather warnings have also been issued for rain, snow and ice in parts of Wales, Northern Ireland, Scotland and the northwest of England. Meanwhile, The Environment Agency has said that many rivers are at “dangerously high levels.”
Prime minister Boris Johnson announced that the government is "totally prepared" for the crisis. People have also been told they may leave their homes in an emergency, even with Covid rules in place.
Hello and welcome
Hello and welcome to the Independent’s live coverage of Storm Christoph.
Thousands evacuated from their homes
Thousands of people have spent the night away from their homes after more than 2,000 houses in Manchester were evacuated over flooding fears.
Residents were told to leave properties in the Didsbury and Northenden areas of the city as the River Mersey’s water levels rose amid heavy downpours — and snow — from Storm Christoph.
Report by Colin Drury
People told to leave houses in Manchester, Merseyside and Wales as rain and snow bring fears of major flooding
Boris Johnson urges people to leave home
The prime minister said that people should: “take the precautions that you’re advised to do.” Mr Johnson recalled times when he had been to flood scenes and found that people had “alas decided not to obey the advice and not evacuated.”
He underlines that it “really was advisable” to listen to the guidance given particularly when people are already stressed by the pandemic.
The prime minister visits Manchester
Boris Johnson visited Manchester this morning to see the River Mersey. He praised The Environment Agency’s response to the flooding.
Concerns as coronavirus vaccine warehouse threatened by flooding
All "necessary precautions" have been taken to prevent disruption to the manufacture of the Oxford/AstraZeneca Covid vaccine, according to a spokeswoman for Wockhardt UK.
The manufacturing facility is located on Wrexham Industrial Estate and experienced some “mild flooding.”
Emergency teams were called out to help protect supplies of the vaccine when water began to surround buildings on the industrial estate in Wrexham, Wales.
The leader of Wrexham County Borough Council said authorities had worked “through the night” to help keep vaccine supplies dry. Mark Prichard told Sky News that prevention measures had been a “success.”
He added that there had been concerns any damage to the vaccines at the facility could have had an impact “across the whole country.”
A spokeswoman for Wockhardt UK has confirmed:"the site is now secure and free from any further flood damage and operating as normal."
Storm Christoph: Police say onlookers driving to ‘see the floods’ as thousands evacuate homes
Police have urged people not to drive to “see the floods” as heavy rainfall has forced thousands to evacuate their homes.
North Wales Police said its officers were helping the fire service to evacuate homes in Ruthin, Denbighshire, after the storm brought heavy rainfall to much of the UK on Wednesday.
Report by Chiara Giordano
Officers in North Wales say ‘people who do not live locally’ are travelling to area hit by heavy rainfall
Police abandon car having ‘misjudged’ water depth
Two Derbyshire police officers abandoned their car on a flooded road having: "misjudged the depth of water in the poor light," a spokeswoman said.
The pair were out on patrol in Darley Abbey early on Thursday morning when their car became stranded.
A spokeswomen for Derbyshire police explained: “Our fire service colleagues were called to help the officers out of the car safely and both constables are safe and well.”
Landslip fears in Huddersfield as residents evacuated
Residents of two homes in Huddersfield were evacuated Wednesday night over fears that heavy rainfall could prompt a landslide.
The properties back onto the River Colne and sit above an area of partially collapsed riverbank. This happened due to a minor landslip around 18 months ago.
Emergency services were called to the properties 6:15pm Wednesday over worries that fresh terrain was falling at the site.
A fire fighter from Slaithwaite fire station said crew could "hear the earth moving" reported The Yorkshire Post .
Surveyors are expected to visit the scene today to assess the risk.
Man spotted snowboarding in Wigan
A man was caught on camera making the most of the wintery weather in Greater Manchester.
Footage shows him snowboarding down an icy street, whilst attached to a car via a rope.
Flooding in the Midlands: ‘We can’t keep on going if it’s like this’
Flooding has also affected parts of the Midlands. There were reports that several businesses in the town of Matlock were suffering from water ingress.
Ben Bowler, co-owner of The Tipsy Toad pub in Matlock, told the BBC: “We've got about three inches of water in the pub, so we're getting some sandbags in to try and stop it getting any higher.”
Jules Neale, who also co-owns the pub, added: “It's happening year-on-year now, and we can't keep on going if it's like this.”
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