UK weather live: More flood warnings issued across England as commuters hit by travel chaos on roads and rail
The Environment Agency has issued 32 flood warnings after Monday’s deluge
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Flood warnings continue across parts of the UK, after extreme rainfall on Sunday and Monday caused roads and schools to close and wreaked transport chaos on commuters.
The autumn equinox coincided with heavy downpours as the Met Office warned “heavy rain is expected to produce some flooding”, with the Environment Agency issuing 32 warnings and 94 flood alerts.
On Monday, an amber and yellow weather warning remained in place across most of England and Wales until the end of Monday, with several schools up and down the country expected to remain closed on Tuesday.
The A421 in Bedfordshire is closed in both directions between A6 and M1 J13 due to flooding. Also, the A505 in Hitchin, Elton Way in Watford and the A404 between Chorleywood and Rickmansworth were all shut on Monday morning for the safety of road users, Hertfordshire County Council said.
Dan Harris, deputy chief meteorologist at the Met Office said on Wednesday and Thursday “unsettled weather is set to return as further frontal systems move in from the Atlantic, bringing showers or longer spells of rain to many parts of the UK”.
Flooding causes disruption at Euston station
Euston station has apologised for the disruption caused to passengers after flooding near Milton Keynes caused rail delays.
In a post on X, they said: “We’ve been working through the night to monitor the situation & make sure the tracks are safe for trains to run.”
Met Office’s five-day weather forecast
Today:
Showery rain will affect Scotland, extending to parts of northern England later which can be heavy at times. Elsewhere it will be a brighter at times, though fresher day than on Monday, with a few showers developing.
Tonight:
Rain and showers largely die out across the northeast, though showers continuing across coasts. Cloudy elsewhere and turning cool in sheltered spots.
Wednesday:
Cloudy and mild in the south but rain reaches the southwest during the late morning, spreading eastwards across much of England and Wales by the end of the day.
Outlook for Thursday to Saturday:
Wet and perhaps windy weather affecting most areas on Thursday. Northern Scotland should remain drier, and colder. A showery, blustery and chilly northerly airstream for all on Friday.
Isolated showers and average temperatures in coming days
Maximum temperatures are expected to rise no higher than the mid-teens over the coming days, the Met Office has said.
Meteorologist Liam Eslick said: “There may be odd, heavier bursts just clipping the South East as a system does slowly start to move away, but it’s a much drier day for most people.
“There is going to be some isolated showers here and there, but they’re going to be very light, nothing like the torrential rain that we’ve seen over the last couple of days.”
River levels should start to decrease to more manageable levels elsewhere towards the end of the day as more water seeps into the ground.
The shift to drier conditions in southern areas will also signal a slight dip in temperatures.
Travel chaos continues for road and rail commuters after extreme rainfall
Rail passengers on two of the UK’s busiest routes face cancellations, diversions and delays during the Tuesday rush hour, due to signalling problems and flooding. Meanwhile a key road in Bedfordshire remains closed due to heavy flooding, with no indication of when the A421 might reopen.
The main line from Bournemouth, Southampton and Winchester to London Waterloo will have no trains running between Basingstoke and Winchester “until approximately 10am” according to National Rail.
South Western Railway, which runs most of the trains on the affected stretch of line, warned disruption would last even longer, saying: “Train services running through these stations may be cancelled, delayed or revised. Disruption is expected until 12 noon.”
Read the full article here:
More travel chaos hits road and rail commuters after month’s rain falls in 24 hours
‘At this stage we cannot provide a timeline for the A421 road to reopen’ – National Highways
West Coast main line and Chiltern railway disrupted by flooding
Passengers on the West Coast main line – which connects London Euston with the West Midlands, northwest England, North Wales and southern Scotland – face serious problems during the morning rush-hour.
Avanti West Coast and London Northwestern Railway services between through Northamptonshire are seriously disrupted .
National Rail says: “Heavy flooding between Rugby and Milton Keynes Central is disrupting journeys between these stations. As a result, trains may be cancelled, delayed by up to 20 minutes or revised.” Buses are replacing trains between Northampton and Milton Keynes Central.
The line running roughly parallel, between Banbury and Bicester North, is expected to be disrupted until noon.
National Rail said: “Heavy flooding between Banbury and Bicester North means the lines towards London are blocked. As a result, trains running between these stations may be cancelled, delayed by up to 30 minutes, or diverted.
“Trains running towards London will not call at Bicester North, passengers should travel to/from Bicester Village. Disruption is expected to continue until 12 noon.”
Environment Agency issue 32 flood warnings
The Environment Agency have issued 32 flood warnings across parts of the UK, and have warned that further local inland flooding is possible across England on Tuesday.
Areas that are at risk of flooding include areas close to the River Great Ouse, and certain parts of Northmapton and Leighton Buzzard.
As of 8am, a further 94 flood alerts had also been issued across large parts of England, including the Midlands and the south-east.
Main Hampshire commuter line to London blocked
The main line from Bournemouth, Southampton and Winchester to London Waterloo will have no trains running between Basingstoke and Winchester “until approximately 10am” according to National Rail.
South Western Railway, which runs most of the trains on the affected stretch of line, warned disruption would last even longer, saying: “Train services running through these stations may be cancelled, delayed or revised. Disruption is expected until 12 noon.”
Some trains may be re-routed away from the affected stretch of track, though this will sharply increase journey times.
CrossCountry trains from Bournemouth and Southampton to Birmingham and Manchester are also affected.
'We cannot provide a timeline for the A421 to reopen' – National Highways
On the roads, the key problem remains in Bedfordshire: the closure of the A421 between the A6 at Bedford and junction 13 of the M1 due to flooding.
National Highways says: “Following spells of torrential rain, flooding occurred at Marston Moretaine on the evening of Sunday 22 September with water levels of up eight feet recorded.
“This has severely impacted efforts to clear floodwater from the carriageway. National Highways service providers continue to work at scene and at present a number of articulated tankers and pumping equipment are in use as efforts to clear the road continue.
“At this stage we cannot provide a timeline for the road to reopen. Three vehicles that have been abandoned in the flooded section will also need to be recovered before the carriageway can be fully re-opened.”
In addition, the A5 in Buckinghamshire is closed northbound at Milton Keynes due to flooding caused by heavy rainfall.
Flash floods hit parts of Britain as month’s worth of rain to fall in 24 hours
Parts of Britain have been struck by flash floods after some areas saw more than a month’s worth of rain in 24 hours.
Heavy rainfall has seen parts of Northamptonshire, Bedfordshire and London submerged – causing widespread travel disruption and damage to properties.
According to the Environment Agency, at least 45 properties have flooded across Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Kent and the Home Counties.
William Warnes reports:
Flash floods hit parts of Britain as month’s worth of rain to fall in 24 hours
Heavy rainfall has seen parts of Northamptonshire, Bedfordshire and London submerged causing widespread travel disruption and damage to properties.
Cold arctic air to bring drop in temperatures
A blast of cold arctic air will bring colder temperatures towards the end of the week.
The Met Office says temperatures will decline, “leading us into a brief cold spell by the end of the week”. A more unsettled week lies ahead, with colder temperatures forecast.
It will feel chilly on Wednesday, followed by an unsettled and cold day on Thursday and cold and windy weather on Friday, the Met Office says.
A change of feel is on the way as temperatures decline, leading us into a brief cold spell by the end of the week pic.twitter.com/pF4NgRdX0k
— Met Office (@metoffice) September 23, 2024
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