River Severn flooding to continue from Ironbridge to Bewdley as weather warnings issued
Residents dealing with flooding along the River Severn are facing further misery after several severe weather warnings were issued for the West Midlands.
A yellow weather warning of snow and ice was issued for much of the Midlands on Thursday, including the River Severn in Bewdley and Ironbridge, where flood defences buckled under the pressure of water this week.
Residents of both towns had to evacuate after the river spilled over the temporary barriers installed at Beales Corner and the Wharfage.
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The Severn is now receding in Bewdley after peaking at 5.48m on Wednesday afternoon but flooding is likely to continue until at least Sunday, the Environment Agency said.
Around 525 tons of water was flowing through Bewdley and Stourport every second on Thursday as the river reached a higher level than last week but did not quite reach the record 5.56m level recorded in November 2000.
Water that had passed through the barriers at Beales Corner was being pumped back into the river this morning so that repairs could be made before the next batch of rain hits.
Flood warnings remain in place along the length of the River Severn, with the Government warning that further rainfall could cause the river levels to rise again.
A severe "danger to life" warning covering the river at Ironbridge remained in place on Thursday morning, among a total of 92 flood warnings and 132 flood alerts issued.
England has already received over 200 per cent of its average February rainfall, according to the Environment Agency, with some areas experiencing a month's worth of rain in 24 hours.
Toby Willison, executive director of operations at the Environment Agency, said: "Our operational teams continue to work night and day to protect communities alongside the River Severn, which is experiencing record levels.
"River levels will remain exceptionally high on the Severn for some time and communities, in particular Shrewsbury, Bewdley, Bridgnorth and Ironbridge, should prepare for potentially ongoing severe flooding."
As the Environment Agency said that flooding is expected to continue into the weekend across parts of England, Boris Johnson was criticised by Jeremy Corbyn over his "silent" response to flooding across the country.
But the Prime Minister said he was "proud" of the response by ministers following the recent storms and defended the Government's investment in flood defences.
Operational teams have put up more than 6km of temporary flood barriers across the country and flood defences have protected more than 34,184 properties over the last week.
A "swathe of wet weather" from the South West was due to push in overnight and into Thursday morning, with two yellow weather warnings of snow issued by the Met Office.
Meteorologist Alex Burkill said: "It's not just the snow, there's going to be a fair bit of rainfall mixed in with it.
"It's not going to be large amounts, between 10-15mm of rain in some places, but it could be falling on heavily saturated areas."
Meanwhile a yellow warning for wind has been issued covering all of the West Midlands and most of England and Wales on Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning.
A severe warning for rain has been issued for Friday and, although it does not cover the West Midlands, it does include most of Wales meaning the levels of the River Severn will again be pushed up.
Further afield
In East Yorkshire, residents were being evacuated from the village of East Cowick after the River Aire broke its banks.
East Riding of Yorkshire Council said in a statement its staff along with teams from the Coastguard and Humberside Fire & Rescue were going to door-to-door in the village, where sandbags have been deployed to protect around 60 properties.
East Cowick was the council's "main area of concern" but it had also arranged sandbags to protect 100 properties in Snaith, where residents were advised to evacuate from their homes on Wednesday afternoon as water from the Aire and surrounding washlands continued to rise.
Flood warnings remain in place in the Snaith area, where locals have criticised the lack of help they have received from the authorities.
Snaith Priory Church has been opened as a rest centre due to the flooding, providing food, drinks and beds.
