Travel disruption after widespread coastal flooding in UK as storm hits – BBC News

One man in Shoreham-by-Sea said flooding in the town was “scary and unprecedented”, after he stayed awake until the early hours putting flood defences around his property.

Gareth Theobald, 36, told the PA news agency: “I was out the front of the building and watching the water just get higher and higher and higher, and then helping or stopping traffic going into the floodwaters, and then just watching in disbelief as the whole of Brighton Road and our multimillion-pound development was being engulfed by floodwaters.

“The amount of water is scary and unprecedented, and those houses opposite our development are lower-ground flats and they were all flooded under a foot or so of water.”

The strong winds and high tide sent waves crashing over the sea wall near Clarence Pier in Portsmouth.

The promenade was left partly submerged in the early hours as the tide reached its peak.

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There have been more problems in Somerset where a caravan park has been flooded.

Pictures of Blue Anchor, near the coast of the Bristol Channel, show the extent of the problems where several fields are now underwater.

The Environment Agency have issued a flood alert for the high tide for the coast around the Isle of Wight.

The high tide, which is higher than normal due to unsettled weather with strong westerly Force 6 winds, is expected around midday.

Urging residents to be prepared, Isle of Wight Council said sandbags would be available to residents in the following locations:

• Cowes, St Mary’s Car Park
• East Cowes, Well Road
• Ryde, Simeon Street Recreation Ground

The authority said that as a precautionary measure it recommended flood protection be installed at Medina Road, Cowes, one hour before high tide.

For one hour either side of high water, very minor impact flooding is expected to affect some seafront roads, esplanades and car parks across the island.

West Sussex Fire and Rescue said it was still dealing with three severe flooding incidents in Earnley, Littlehampton and Bracklesham, after the River Arun burst its banks.

It said 180 people were evacuated from Medmerry Holiday Park in Earnley overnight, after crews were called at 01:00 BST.

Crews have now left the scene but the situation will be monitored for the rest of the day.

About 20 people have also been evacuated from Bracklesham Caravan and Boat Club, after it was flooded just after 06:30.

Water levels have not yet receded and may increase during the day, with warnings for people to get to higher ground still in place.

Three of the six yellow weather warnings issued by the Met Office are still in place across the UK.

A warning for Wales’ west coast has been issued between 01:00 and 15:00 BST on Tuesday, when “a spell of strong winds” will affect the region.

In Scotland, areas including Edinburgh, Glasgow, Perth and Aberdeen could see up to 40mm of rainfall until 18:00 on Tuesday.

Further rainfall is forecast in western Scotland on Wednesday until 18:00 and may cause flooding, with up to 25mm of rain expected to fall in most places and 40-50mm on high ground.

Warnings for the south and south-west of England have now ended.

The weather service warned rain and wind could cause disruption to rail and road travel across the country, as driving conditions worsen because of slippery road surfaces and limited visibility.

Met Office forecaster Simon Partridge said that while these levels of rainfall would not be a “huge cause for concern” on their own, they will fall onto “already saturated ground” which increases the risk of flooding.

A “higher than normal” tide on the Humber Estuary in Lincolnshire left a Cleethorpes attraction submerged in water on Monday evening.

High tides in the coming days may cause flooding along the Humber, the Environment Agency warned.

Michael Turner from the Environment Agency said teams were preparing for high tides later today.

He told BBC Radio Sussex: “We expect another high tide at noon today.

“It shouldn’t be as high as the one in the middle of the night because the winds are now moderating and the spring tides are starting to drop off.

“But we do still urge people to stay away from the coast and take extreme care on coastal paths and promenades, and to not drive through floodwater.”

He said teams would also be assessing the damage to coastal defences.

“The defences along parts of Sussex are what we call soft defences, shingle beaches.” he said.

“If they’ve been eroded we will get out with machines and restore those, but it may take some time.”

On the Isle of Wight, sea water has deluged a number of roads, homes and businesses in Cowes.

Charity shop Mountbatten Retail has been forced to close after it flooded overnight.

Staff have been working to salvage what they can but said the shop would be closed until further notice.

The independent charity provides end of life care and bereavement support to anyone living on the island.

The A4 Portway route – which links the city centre with the M5 – has suffered from flooding problems this morning.

The route is next to the River Avon, and flooding has affected one lane heading out of the city.

The high water at East Cowes on the Isle of Wight left this car stranded outside the Red Funnel ferry terminal.

It was a rough ride for passengers and crew on this ferry in the English Channel this morning.

Sea flooding is also affecting the railway line at Lymington Pier with trains unable to run.

South Western Railway said once the sea levels had dropped, engineers would need to inspect the line for any damage before it could be safely reopened.

Disruption is expected until 14:00.

Weston Shore on the east side of Southampton, along the Solent, has been left underwater after the high tide.

The road, paths and car parks are closed between Abbey Hill to Woolston with people being urged to avoid the area.

Rail services in Bristol have also been hit by flooding.

National Rail said water had risen above the tracks between Clifton Down in Bristol and Severn Beach, meaning trains could not run on the branch line.

Train services running to and from Severn Beach will run between Taunton, Weston-super-Mare, Bristol Temple Meads and Clifton Down only, a spokesperson said.

The closure is expected to remain in place until approximately 12:30 BST.

Streets in Old Portsmouth were left underwater in the early hours after high-tide flooding.

In Newhaven, there was flooding on Denton Island overnight although it had subsided by this morning.

Peter Leonard, who owns a boat yard on Denton Island, said: “I’ve worked here for 30 years and have never known Denton Island to flood.”

He said he thought flooding was likely again at high tide at about 13:00 BST.

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Copyright: BBC Weather Watcher/View from feet today

High tides combined with strong winds have led to flooding in parts of Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.

Many coastal roads have been left impassable, including Castle Street, East Cowes, and Western Shore near Southampton.

There are numerous flood warnings in place across Hampshire, including the River Itchen, with people urged to avoid Riverside Park and tidal areas of the Hamble estuary, including Hamble, Bursledon, and Warsash.

Five Environment Agency flood warnings are currently in place on the Isle of Wight, including Cowes, East Cowes, and Newport, with people urged to move cars from seafront car parks.

About 100 people have been evacuated from a caravan park between Bracklesham and Selsey in West Sussex.

One person was taken to hospital suffering from the effects of hypothermia.

People living in Littlehampton were warned to move to higher ground or the upstairs parts of their properties after the River Arun burst its banks.

The Environment Agency said the combination of high tides and gale force winds from Storm Pierrick had caused “potentially record high tides across the south coast”.

Copyright: Eddie Mitchell

Welcome to BBC live coverage of widespread flooding along the south coast of England following high tides and strong winds.