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Snow and ice warning for West Midlands in aftermath of Storm Bella

A severe weather warning has been issued for the West Midlands with Storm Bella's wind and rain set to be replaced by snow and ice.

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Flooding in Pipe Ridware, near Rugeley, on Sunday

Several roads were left flooded as Storm Bella brought gusts of more than 70mph to the region on Boxing Day night and although the storm has now passed, a new warning has been issued as the wintry weather continues.

The yellow alert, in place from midnight on Monday, warns of potential travel disruption as a result of snow and ice on Monday and is in place for large parts of the UK, including all of the West Midlands.

Flood warnings are also in force for the River Severn, which had already burst its banks in numerous places - including Stourport, Bewdley, and Ironbridge - before Christmas and is now expected to rise again in the aftermath of Storm Bella.

Flood barriers remain in place at Bewdley and Ironbridge but the most serious flooding is expected further down the Severn in Worcester and beyond.

Firefighters in Staffordshire urged people against attempting to pass "road closed" signs after crews from Cannock and Lichfield had to help people from two cars stranded in floodwater on Pipe Ridware near Rugeley.

Alerts are also in place for the River Penk and River Sow in Stafford and the River Worfe near Cosford.

In total a further 88 flood warnings have been issued in England, along with six in Wales and 12 in Scotland.

National picture: Winds top 100mph

Winds reached more than 100mph overnight as Storm Bella brought rain and blowy conditions across the UK.

Two threat to life flood warnings remain in place in Northamptonshire after days of wintry weather across the Christmas break, with a cold snap with icy and wintry conditions still to come.

The top wind speed was recorded at the Needles on the Isle of Wight where it reached 106mph overnight on Saturday.

Aberdaron in north-west Wales experienced gusts of 83mph, and locations on the south coast of England, including Dorset, got close to 80mph.

The gales meant that for the first time ever, more than half of Britain’s electricity was generated by wind power on Saturday.

According to energy firm Drax, 50.67% of the country’s power was produced by wind turbines.

Fire crews in north Yorkshire had to rescue a number of people from vehicles stranded in floodwater overnight.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said they used a boat to rescue two men and two dogs from a vehicle stuck in flowing floodwater in Hawes at 12.37am on Sunday.

Flood barriers were put up in Ironbridge earlier this week

In Aysgarth, a man and a woman were also rescued by boat from the roof of their car at 2.40am after they drove into deep floodwater.

And firefighters walked a woman to safety through shallow water in Wensley at 3.35am after a minor collision while driving through floods.

The disruption continued into Sunday morning when flooding on the tracks caused cancellations and delays.

All trains between Bournemouth and Southampton Central were stopped due to water on the line, Great Western Railway said, and one of the major lines into London was also blocked when a tree fell on to the tracks in Haslemere, Surrey.

Two severe flood warnings indicating a potential threat to life are still in place at Cogenhoe Mill caravan site near Northampton and on the River Nene near Billing Aquadrome on Sunday morning.

On Sunday, yellow weather warnings for ice and snow remained in place across Scotland, northern England, Northern Ireland and parts of North Wales.

Snow and sleet is a possibility in Scotland from Sunday morning, and will move south throughout the day, bringing the risk of ice and bad driving conditions.

Through the evening and into Monday, meteorologists are warning the snow and ice could also pose a risk to more central and southern areas of England.

Further into the week and towards the New Year conditions will remain cold with sunshine and the possibility of wintry showers, the Met Office said.

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