Storm Babet flooding sees severe warnings as hundreds evacuate - BBC.com

Residents walk through flood water in Retford in Nottinghamshire

By James Gregory & Harrison Jones

BBC News

Residents of some 500 homes in a Nottinghamshire town have been urged to evacuate due to flooding caused by Storm Babet.

Nottinghamshire County Council declared a major incident and told people in Retford they were at risk over high water levels along the River Idle.

The river reached record levels on Sunday, with water still rising.

More flooding is possible for parts of England until Wednesday due to further rain, the Environment Agency has said.

Five severe flood warnings were lifted on Sunday evening - two were for the River Idle in the East Midlands and three were for the River Derwent in Derby.

But areas along the River Severn, Britain's largest river, will be affected in the coming days, and the agency is warning that widespread flooding is probable in parts of the Midlands and the North of England.

Retford resident Brendan Hunt was forced to evacuated his home and fears the damage to his property from flooding "could be endless".

"[The water] is still right up to the threshold of the front door," he told the PA News Agency.

He said that he was at home moving as many of his possessions as possible upstairs until the early hours of Sunday, adding that he believes he will have to replace all of his downstairs flooring if the water gets in.

Flooding in Retford in Nottinghamshire, after Storm Babet battered the UK, causing widespread flooding and high winds.

Rescue workers talk to a man on his doorstep amid flooding in Retford in Nottinghamshire, after Storm Babet battered the UK.

Water levels in the River Idle are expected to peak at 20:00 BST on Sunday.

A temporary shelter has been set up at Retford Leisure Centre to help residents affected by the "unprecedented" situation, Nottinghamshire County Council said.

There were also record-breaking water levels in the River Derwent nearby in Derbyshire this weekend, with authorities warning that cleaning up after the floods could take days.

Meanwhile, a woman in her 80s, named by her son as Maureen Gilbert, has died in Chesterfield after her home was flooded.

Paul Gilbert said emergency services had tried to rescue Mrs Gilbert on Friday but were unable to enter the property. Mr Gilbert found his mother in the water the following morning.

Derbyshire Police said the cause of her death remained uncertain but investigations were continuing.

In other developments:

Three other people are confirmed to have died since Storm Babet hit on Thursday - a man in his 60s in Shropshire and two people in Scotland including 57-year-old Wendy Taylor who was swept away by river water
Police Scotland told BBC News on Sunday it was continuing to search for an unnamed driver reported to be trapped in a vehicle near Marykirk, Aberdeenshire, on Friday.
More than 150 flood warnings and some 140 flood alerts are in place in England
People in Shropshire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire are being warned to expect more flooding in the coming days
Residents of a South Yorkshire village evacuated on Saturday say they feel abandoned after their homes and possessions were badly damaged by floodwaters
There is disruption on the rail network in Yorkshire, East Anglia, the East Midlands and Scotland
London North Eastern Railway (LNER) has advised customers not to travel north of Edinburgh, and no services are operating from the city towards Aberdeen or Inverness
There are fears some families may not make it home for Christmas in some parts of Scotland due to the extent of the damage

A man rides a bike through flooding in Retford in Nottinghamshire.

The Environment Agency has warned flooding along major rivers in England could continue for days due to further heavy rain.

Parts of Yorkshire and the Humber and the East Midlands may see more flooding on Monday, the agency said.

Katharine Smith, flood duty manager at the Environment Agency, said teams are on the ground helping local communities.

"Temporary defences, including pumps and barriers, have been deployed to minimise the impact of flooding where needed," she said.

"Flood gates have also been closed in affected areas. We also advise people to stay away from swollen rivers and urge people not to drive through flood water as just 30cm of flowing water is enough to move your car."

Emergency services assist in the evacuation of people from their homes in Brechin.

A car is seen on a bridge washed away near Dundee following yesterdays torrential rain as Storm Babet batters the country and a rare red weather warning is in place for parts of eastern Scotland all day on Saturday.

BBC Weather forecaster Gemma Plumb said: "There were a number of places in north and east England, and in Scotland, that saw at least a month's worth of rain in a few days as a result of Storm Babet, with one or two places seeing closer to twice the average monthly rainfall - one of which was Wattisham in Suffolk."

But Met Office spokesman Dave Britton said those worst affected by the flooding could see "a couple of quieter days".

He added there were no Met Office weather warnings in force for the remainder of the week, except for one on ice in Scotland on Sunday night.

"There is this pulse of rain moving its way north overnight later on Monday and into Tuesday, but the rest of the week does look like it remains rather unsettled with spells of rain at times", Mr Britton continued.

Experts say climate change makes extreme flooding events more likely because a warming atmosphere increases the chance of intense rainfall.

However, many factors contribute to flooding and it takes time for scientists to calculate how much impact climate change has had on particular weather events - if any.

The world has already warmed by about 1.1C since the industrial era began and temperatures will keep rising unless governments around the world make steep cuts to emissions.

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