Storm-swollen rivers surge in UK, severe flood alerts issued
Published:Tuesday | February 18, 2020 | 12:17 PM
LONDON (AP) — Residents in central England and Wales piled up sandbags, readied water pumps and hoped for the best Tuesday as rivers peaked after a weekend storm brought up to six inches of rain to an already waterlogged region.
Environment agencies in England and Wales on Tuesday declared 8 severe flood warnings, meaning there was an immediate danger to life, for the rivers Severn, Wye and Lugg. Two other severe warnings were lifted.
About 150 less severe flood warnings were also in place.
In the Welsh town of Monmouth, the River Wye reached a record level of over 23 feet.
Residents of one flooded street used canoes to get to a nearby supermarket and mountain rescue teams saved one man from his flooded home by raft.
The Welsh water supplier asked residents to reduce their usage after a water treatment plant was flooded and lost power.
Welsh Water said it had “limited storage of drinking water until we’re able to access and restart the treatment works.”
Storm Dennis — the second major storm of the winter — blew through the UK on Saturday and Sunday, bringing wind gusts of up to 90 miles per hour and heavy rain that flooded roads, railways, homes and businesses.
The storm killed three people in Britain, including a 55-year-old woman who was swept away by floodwaters in the central English town of Tenbury.
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