Rain brings flood chaos

Some residents were forced out of their homes by flooding that caused raw sewage to spew from drains.

In parts of the region more than the average rainfall for the whole of June – 2.4 inches – fell in just 24 hours. At the Met Office base in Edgbaston, Birmingham, 3.3 inches of rain was recorded.

Many roads were closed for a period as drains battled to cope with the deluge and drivers on the motorway network were warned of the risk of aquaplaning.

The downpour also caused power cuts in some areas.

West Midlands Fire and Rescue Service responded to more than 250 weather-related calls last night and this morning.

Aldridge Science School in Walsall was closed today as the heavy rain caused a number of laboratories to be flooded. A boiler at the school was submerged under three foot of water and footpaths linking buildings at the school were also submerged.

All train services out of Birmingham were cancelled early this morning because of waterlogged lines although some lines re-opened later.

This morning's scheduled trains to and from Wolverhampton, Manchester, Liverpool Lime Street and Aberystwyth were cancelled.

Central Trains called off all services between Walsall and Birmingham.

Passengers arrived at Tame Bridge Parkway, in Walsall, to find the railway tracks under two feet of water.

The Wolverhampton to Birmingham line was also shut until around 8am, when Central Trains were able to operate a reduced service between the cities.

People who chose to use their car did not fare much better.

There were long delays on the A54 between Featherstone and Cannock, the M6 near Cannock and the A5 off Junction 12 near Gailey.

Council engineers were called to Birmingham New Road, in Lanesfield, Wolverhampton, at around 8.30am to pump away flood water.

Shocked neighbours in Allerton Lane, West Bromwich, found their ground floors under a foot of water and raw sewage today.

Angela Gill, aged 35, and her family – husband Jason, 36 and daughter Lexi, 16 – were stranded on the upper floor of their home, with no power, since 3am.

Mrs Gill said: "It is terrible. I woke up this morning and the dog was crying and the ground floor of the house was under water."

In Evans Street, Portobello, Wolverhampton, children making their way to school were forced to wade through flood water contaminated with raw sewage.

Resident Mark Morris said: "It happens every time there is heavy rain."

Power cuts in parts of Birmingham left residents without electricity. More than 2,000 people were affected by the cuts in Erdington, Castle Vale and Sutton Coldfield.