Rescuers pulled stranded families from flooded homes Sunday as Storm Dennis inundated parts of the United Kingdom.
As of 1:30 p.m., English authorities had issued more than 600 flood warnings in the past 24 hours, including four severe flood warnings, which indicate there is a danger to life. It was the first time since 2015 that the Met Office issued a red rain warning.
Two severe flood warnings were issued in Wales, which was hit particularly hard by the storm. Overall, Welsh authorities issued 130 flood warnings.
(MORE: Storm Dennis Is One of the Most Intense North Atlantic Storms on Record)
Police and other emergency officials declared a major incident after Storm Dennis caused flooding and landslides in south Wales. Communities were cut off, and water rushed into homes. Evacuations were ordered in Monmouthshire and Neath. Rivers across South Wales overflowed their banks.
“The river started rising about 1 a.m. and at 3 a.m. it started coming into the house,” Amy Price told the BBC.
With water on the ground floor rising as high as the light switches, the family was trapped upstairs in their home in Llanover, Monmouthshire, in southeast Wales.
South Wales Fire and Rescue chief officer Huw Jakeway said nearly 1,000 emergency calls were received since midnight.
Jessica Falk Perlman told BBC Radio 5 Live that firefighters in Crickhowell, Powys, woke them at 4 a.m. to tell them they were being evacuated because the River Usk had burst its banks.
“The door of our house burst open and water came flooding in right up to the top of the stairs which was quite nerve wracking at the time,” she said. “It’s well over the front door of the house, it’s flooded all the way up to the ceiling.”
Floodwater from the River Taff lapped at the doors of businesses in Pontypridd.
Widespread flooding across Pontypridd, towards the town centre #StormDennis @gtfm107950911:45 PM – Feb 15, 2020Twitter Ads info and privacy355 people are talking about this
At Cray Reservoir, Powys, south Wales, 5.23 inches (132.8 mm) of rain was recorded between 7 a.m. Saturday and 8 a.m. Sunday. The average rainfall in Wales for the month of February is 4.36 inches (110.8 mm).
Storm Dennis also brought flooding to parts of England on Sunday.
A major incident was declared in Herefordshire, which was hit by significant and widespread flooding.
Many roads across the county were closed, including most routes in and out of Hereford city, the Hereford Times reported. The River Lugg burst its banks in Leominster and in Presteigne.
In neighboring Worcestershire, 50 homes were evacuated in Tenbury.
A major incident was also been declared in Lowdham, a village in Nottinghamshire.
The roof a building in Herne Bay, Kent, collapsed and buried cars parked below with bricks.
Hundreds of flights have been canceled over the weekend disrupting travel plans for many British families taking advantage of the mid-winter school break.
A wind speed of 91 mph was recorded in Aberdaron on the Welsh coast.
Train service was halted on many lines in Wales and England.
In Scotland, cascading water from an aqueduct forced Network Rail to turn off electricity to overhead lines that power the trains.
Network Rail Scotland@NetworkRailSCOT
Power to our overhead lines has been turned off due to water from the aqueduct in the Bishopton area rushing onto them from above. The video attached captures the severity of the situation. We will update you further on the flow of water from the aqueduct as soon as we can.3362:50 AM – Feb 16, 2020Twitter Ads info and privacy150 people are talking about this
A river burst its banks near Newcastleton in southern Scotland and trapped a couple in their car, the BBC reported. Floodwaters pushed the car from the road and trapped it against a fence. Rescuers had to set up ropes to free the couple.
More than 80 homes were flooded in Newcastleton.
The town of Hawick in the Scottish Borders also was hit by severe flooding overnight. A number of homes had to be evacuated.
Storm Dennis, the fourth named storm of Europe’s winter season, has been blamed for the deaths of two men. They were pulled from the water in separate searches off England’s southeastern coast on Saturday.
This was the second week in a row the region has been battered by severe weather. Storm Ciara killed eight people in six countries, including England, last weekend.
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
