UK weather: Flash floods leave cars underwater as some areas see more than a month’s rainfall
Parts of the UK were struck by flash flooding after some areas saw more than a month’s worth of rain in 24 hours.
Heavy rain left parts of Northamptonshire, Bedfordshire and London submerged, flooding properties and causing widespread travel disruption.
At least 45 homes flooded across Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Kent and the Home Counties, according to the Environment Agency.
The open boot of a submerged car on the A421 in Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire. Pic: PA
The A421 in Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire, was closed. Pic: PA
As of 7pm on Monday, 22 flood warnings had been issued for England by the agency.
The A421 in Bedfordshire was closed in both directions between the A6 Bedford and M1 J13 near Marston Moretaine, according to National Highways, and the A5 in Buckinghamshire was closed northbound between the A421 Bletchley/Stadium MK and the A509 at Milton Keynes due to flooding.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
House flooded as heavy rain hits UK
Some schools in Bedfordshire were also closed, with an update on Central Bedfordshire Council’s website citing water ingress/flooding as being the reason for the closure.
The London Underground’s District Line was not running between Turnham Green and Richmond due to flooding caused by heavy rain, while other Tube lines in London were also partly suspended throughout the day.
A woman who lives in Ruislip, London, also told Sky News her home was “destroyed” by the flood water.
Pic: Pav Benning
Pic: Pav Benning
A van in flood water on Hardwater Road near Wellingborough. Pic: PA
London Fire Brigade said its 999 control office took around 350 calls about flooding across the capital.
Firefighters attended incidents including rescuing people trapped in cars, assisting people from their homes and responding to flooding in underground stations, roadways, residences and commercial properties, in Ruislip, Uxbridge, Wimbledon and Carshalton.
Pic: Jordan Pettitt/PA
AFC Wimbledon and Newcastle’s Carabao Cup third-round meeting on Tuesday has been called off due to “extensive overnight flooding” at the Cherry Red Records Stadium.
The Cherry Red Records Stadium in Wimbledon, which appeared to have a sinkhole in the pitch, has been closed as a result, with a rescheduled date for the tie yet to be confirmed.
The amber and yellow warnings in place in the UK. Pic: Met Office
A yellow alert for rain came into effect at midnight on Sunday and lasted until midnight on Monday, covering parts of Wales, much of the south of England, the Midlands and spreading into northwest England and Yorkshire.
An amber warning came into force at 8.15am and lasted until 9pm on Monday.
Initially it covered Worcester, Birmingham, Nottingham and Hull, but an update from the Met Office said the warning area had shifted further south and southwest to include Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire and Buckinghamshire.
A tractor pulling a vehicle which is stuck in flood water in Grendon, Northamptonshire. Pic: PA
Flooding in Perry Barr, Birmingham. Pic: PA
Forecasters said there may be more warnings in the week ahead.
Environment Agency flood duty manager Sarah Cook said “persistent heavy rain and thunderstorms” could lead to some property flooding and travel disruption.
She said: “Persistent heavy rain and thunderstorms could lead to significant surface water flooding on Monday across parts of England.
“The impacts could include localised flooding in urban areas and fast-responding catchments, including some property flooding as well as travel disruption. The risk from river flooding remains low.
“We urge people to plan their journeys carefully, follow the advice of local emergency services on the roads and not to drive through flood water – it is often deeper than it looks and just 30cm of flowing water is enough to float your car.”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Cars trapped in floodwater
See the Sky News forecast for your area
Sky News weather producer Jo Robinson said parts of the south were hammered with nearly two months of heavy rainfall on Sunday.
Many places have basked in higher-than-average temperatures over the last few weeks – but that was probably summer’s last hurrah as autumn beds in.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
Read more from Sky News:
Hezbollah deputy delivers chilling message to West
See if you’re eligible for free vaccines as ‘tripledemic’ approaches
‘Disturbing’ sculpture ‘not meant to upset’
Monday’s downpours are forecast to ease overnight into Tuesday, but the rain is set to be persistent for many this week.
“Through Wednesday and Thursday, unsettled weather is set to return as frontal systems move in from the Atlantic, bringing showers or longer spells of rain to many parts of the UK,” said Met Office deputy chief meteorologist David Oliver.
Meanwhile, Sunday also marked the autumnal equinox – when the day and night are the same length.
Astronomers regard it as the start of the season but weather forecasters generally count autumn as beginning on 1 September.
Nigel Farage has told Sky News he “can’t be pushed or bullied” by anybody after Elon Musk said the Reform MP “doesn’t have what it takes” to lead his party.
In an interview with Sky’s political correspondent Ali Fortescue, Mr Farage said he has spoken with the billionaire owner of X since his criticism on 5 January, when Mr Musk said: “The Reform Party needs a new leader. Farage doesn’t have what it takes.”
Politics latest: Reeves arriving in China for economic talks
Asked if the pair are still friends, Mr Farage said: “Of course we’re friends. He just says what he thinks at any moment in time.”
He added he has “been in touch” with Mr Musk, though wouldn’t divulge what they had discussed.
“Look, he said lots of supportive things. He said one thing that wasn’t supportive. I mean, that’s just the way it is,” Mr Farage said.
Musk and Farage met in December. Pic: PA
Asked if he was afraid to criticise the tech mogul, the Clacton MP said the situation was “the opposite”, and he openly disagreed with Mr Musk on his views on far-right activist Tommy Robinson.
Mr Farage said: “What he [Musk] was saying online was that effectively Tommy Robinson was a political prisoner and I wouldn’t go along with that.
“If I had gone along with that, he wouldn’t have put out a tweet that was against me.
“By the way, you know, I can’t be pushed or bullied or made to change by anybody.
“I stick to what I believe.”
Mr Musk has endorsed Robinson and claimed he was “telling the truth” about grooming gangs, writing on X: “Free Tommy Robinson”.
But Mr Farage said that Robinson, who is serving an 18-month jail term for contempt of court, isn’t welcome in Reform UK and neither are his supporters.
He said: “If people within Reform think Tommy Robinson should be a member of Reform and play a central role in Reform, that disagreement is absolutely fundamental.
“I’ve never wanted to work with people who were active in the BNP. I’ve made that clear right throughout the last decade of my on/off political career. So that’s what the point of difference is.”
Despite their disagreement, Mr Farage said he is confident Mr Musk will continue to support Reform and “may well” still give money to it.
The entrepreneur has previously spoken positively about Reform UK and there have been suggestions he could make a multi-million-pound donation in its favour.
Devolution plans ‘denial of democracy’
Mr Farage was speaking from Reform’s South East of England Conference, one of a series of regional events aimed at building up the party’s support base.
Elsewhere in the interview, he hit out at the Labour government’s devolution plans which could see some local elections scheduled for May postponed.
This would apply when councils seek permission to reorganise, so that smaller district authorities merge with other nearby ones to give them more sway over their area.
Mr Farage, who is hoping to make gains in the spring contests, claimed the plans are not about devolution but about “elections being cancelled”.
“I thought only dictators cancelled elections. This is unbelievable and devolution or a change to local government structures is being used as an excuse,” he said.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage earlier this month. Pic: PA
He claimed Tory-controlled councils are “grabbing it like it’s a life belt”, because they fear losing seats to Reform.
“It’s an absolute denial of democracy,” he added.
Mr Farage was also asked why many Reform members don’t like to speak on camera about why they support his party.
He said he did not accept there was a toxicity associated with Reform and claimed there was “institutional bias against anybody that isn’t left of centre”.
Specialist search teams, police dogs and divers have been dispatched to find two sisters who vanished in Aberdeen three days ago.
Eliza and Henrietta Huszti, both 32, were last seen on CCTV in the city’s Market Street at Victoria Bridge at about 2.12am on Tuesday.
The siblings were captured crossing the bridge and turning right onto a footpath next to the River Dee in the direction of Aberdeen Boat Club.
Henrietta Huszti. Pic: Police Scotland
Eliza Huszti. Pic: Police Scotland
Police Scotland has launched a major search and said it is carrying out “extensive inquires” in an effort to find the women.
Chief Inspector Darren Bruce said: “Local officers, led by specialist search advisors, are being assisted by resources including police dogs and our marine unit.”
Aberdeenshire Drone Services told Sky News it has offered to help in the search and is waiting to hear back from Police Scotland.
CCTV of the sisters. Pic: Police Scotland
Read more from Sky News:
Trump to be sentenced today over porn star hush money
‘It’s an apocalypse’ – families return to homes reduced to ruins by wildfires
The sisters, from Aberdeen city centre, are described as slim with long brown hair.
Police said the Torry side of Victoria Bridge where the sisters were last seen contains many commercial and industrial units, with searches taking place in the vicinity.
The force urged businesses in and around the South Esplanade and Menzies Road area to review CCTV footage recorded in the early hours of Tuesday in case it captured anything of significance.
Drivers with relevant dashcam footage are also urged to come forward.
CI Bruce added: “We are continuing to speak to people who know Eliza and Henrietta and we urge anyone who has seen them or who has any information regarding their whereabouts to please contact 101.”
-
Sports2 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports9 months agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports1 year agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports3 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business2 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway