Heavy rain resulted in widespread flooding for Cumbria, Lancashire and the Isle of Man on 22nd Nov. Rail and road disruption, schools closed and homes flooded.
Weds 22nd Nov 2017 brought high winds to England and Wales with heavy and persistent rain from the Atlantic. As a low pressure worked its way over N.Ireland and Scotland the trailing weather fronts continued to drop rain over Cumbria, Lancashire, parts of Yorkshire, Wales, the Isle of Man and Ireland. Flooding resulted, with several flood warnings and many alerts from the Environment Agency for England and Natural Resources Wales. There was also a Yellow Be Aware warning from the Met Office for heavy rain. All the government agencies now co-ordinate their severe weather warnings and the colour schemes are similar.
Rainfall totals for the 24 hours up to 23/11/17 0600 showed 83mm for Shap Fell and 62mm for Keswick in Cumbria. Morecambe, Lancs had 71mm and up in the mountains of Gwynedd nearly 68mm.
Many photos appeared on social media of flooded roads and high river levels as the rain just kept on coming. The A65 closed north and south of Ingleton and between Settle and Long Preston with a few smaller villages being temporarily cut off.
In Cumbria, new housing developments built on areas known to historically flood, did so. Across the UK more and more houses are going up on land that can not withstand the heavy and persistent rains which will only increase due to climate change. Before you buy, check on the SEPA or Environment Agency maps, they detail the risk.
Northern Rail -Several services Cumbria, Lancashire and N.Yorkshire are currently disrupted due to flooding and adverse weather conditions, Thurs 23rd.
The line is blocked at Aspatria and we are unable to run services between Carlisle and Maryport. Rail replacement road transport is in place for customers at Carlisle and Workington. The line is also blocked, due to flooding, at Silverdale meaning services between Barrow and Lancaster are currently suspended. Services between Oxenholme and Windermere are also unable to operate until further notice. In Lancashire/N.Yorkshire, the Skipton to Lancaster line is currently blocked due to debris on the track following flooding. We are in the process of arranging rail replacement transport.
Schools were closed and more than 70 people had to be rescued from the rising waters. There are still 6 flood warnings in force for Lancs, Cumbria and one on the River Ouse. The 5-day outlook does not highlight any further flood risk in these areas. The outlook for the end of the week into the weekend, is cold and drier, with wintry showers over the hills of the NW.
For those who were affected by Storm Desmond back in December 2015, they will know that the actual day of rain and flooding is just the beginning. The clearing up, insurance and recovery from these flood events is huge and often accompanied by fear that it will just happen again.
During and after flooding Part 2
