Floods warnings in place as storms set to continue

Flood warnings were today in place across the Midlands as heavy wind and rain was expected to continue well into next week.

A total of nine urgent warnings were issued by the Environment Agency in the region.

There were a further 28 flood alerts along rivers including the Severn, Avon and Wreake.

It comes as the Met Office revealed last month was the wettest April in more than 100 years. In Bewdley, the Residents' Flood Committee was today on high alert awaiting news from the agency over flood defences.

Spokeswoman Mary Lynch said the levels at 5am today were around 10.1ft and were expected to peak at a maximum of 11.5ft.

The rain was expected to continue throughout today and into tomorrow, with gusts of wind reaching up to 35mph.

Over the weekend, downpours and winds of up to 70mph in south-west England and Wales brought down trees, left thousands of homes without power and disrupted rail services, while low-lying fields and some roads were submerged.

Despite the heavy rain, swathes of England – including the Midlands – are still officially in a state of drought.

Environment Agency spokeswoman Catherine Ellis warned that the downpour was not enough to make up for two years of below-average rainfall.

"We need at least six months of above-average rainfall to return to normal conditions," she said.

"Although river levels have responded well to recent rain, groundwater levels respond more slowly and in general are still continuing to decline.

"If it is a dry summer, we still expect to see river levels fall to exceptionally low levels with a significant environmental impact."

The agency has put in place 40 flood warnings, where flooding is expected, across England and Wales and 152 flood alerts, where flooding is possible.

The UK saw the wettest April since records began in 1910. The figures up to April 29 showed an average of 4.8 inches had fallen so far this month, almost double the average for April of 2.7ins.