Further floods deluge Britain

By: 9 years ago

A shopkeeper looks at the damage caused by the swollen waters of the River Beck in the Cumbrian village of Glenridding in northwest England after the river burst its banks for the second time since the weekend following overnight heavy rain Thursday Dec.10, 2015. (Danny Lawson/PA via AP) UNITED KINGDOM OUT NO SALES NO ARCHIVE

LONDON — Heavy overnight rain on Thursday piled further misery on parts of northwest England still reeling from Storm Desmond, which left two people dead, with police warning the situation remained “extremely dangerous.”

Britain deployed army personnel, lifeboats and a military helicopter to rescue people trapped by floods that deluged parts of the country at the weekend, with the northwest bearing the brunt.

The river in the village of Glenridding, northwest of the city of Manchester, once again burst its banks Thursday, sending fast-flowing water through the streets.

“Cumbria Police would like to urge the people of Glenridding to stay inside their properties to keep themselves and their families safe,” Cumbria police said.

“Although the flood water is starting to recede, it is still extremely dangerous and would ask any members of the public not to walk or travel through any flood water.”

More than 350 military personnel were deployed Sunday in the town of Carlisle to help evacuate people to reception places as the water reached waist height in places.

One death was reported in London after an elderly man was blown into the path of a bus, police said on Saturday.

A body was also found in a search of the River Kent in Cumbria, police said, after reports that an elderly man had fallen into the water.

The Met Office national weather service said a new British record had been set for rainfall over a 48-hour period, with 405 millimeters falling in 38 hours at Thirlmere in Cumbria.

Desmond is the fourth named storm to hit Britain in recent months.

Following criticism, the Environment Agency said £45 million ($68 million, 63 million euros) had been spent on the defenses in the last decade, and described the rainfall as “beyond the forecasts and beyond the models.”