Wirral has experienced widespread flooding due to Storm Christoph, as these photographs from Wirral residents show.
Northern, central, and eastern England are braced for flooding which has been discussed at a Cobra meeting hosted by Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
“People may think this is a minor issue at the moment, still relevantly minor by standards of previous floods, but never underestimate the suffering, the misery, that floods can cause people.”, the PM said after the Cobra meeting.
The Met Office has said that, “Persistent heavy rain will lead to significant accumulations of rain which could lead to flooding in some areas. An Amber Weather Warning for rain has been issued for parts of northern, central and eastern England. Separate Yellow warnings for rain cover Northern Ireland, Wales, southern Scotland and the rest of England.
“The Amber warning area includes Leeds, Manchester, Sheffield, Wakefield, Lincoln, Nottingham, Leicester and Peterborough and is valid from 0600 on Tuesday through to midday on Thursday. Within the Amber warning area rainfall accumulations could reach up to 200mm in parts of the southern Pennines and northern Peak District, 40-70mm could be seen more widely.”
The North West has been preparing for widespread flooding following the Met Office’s amber weather warning for heavy rain, which is expected to last until midday on Thursday, if not longer.
Merseyrail tweeted that, “Due to flooding, services are suspended between Rock Ferry and Chester. Rail replacement buses are now in operation between these stations, but due to the limited number of buses available, delays may be likely.”
In a statement, the Flood Warning Information Service said, “A prolonged period of heavy rain associated with Storm Christoph will continue to cause river levels to rise at the Acton Lane and Great Culvert Entrance river gauges and consequently flooding of property or roads and farmland is possible.
“We believe there is a possibility of flooding for low lying land and roads around the Rivers Fender and Birket, Rivacre, Dibbinsdale and Arrowe Brooks and their tributaries.
“Further rainfall is forecast over the next 48 hours and we expect river levels to remain high until Friday.
“Our incident response staff are closely monitoring weather forecasts and river levels and will issue flood warnings if necessary.
“Please avoid using low lying footpaths near local watercourses, be aware of your surroundings, and keep up to date with the current situation.”
Brimstage Road both ends is closed off 🌧 #brimstage #wirral
Posted by Chris Robinson on Wednesday, 20 January 2021
United Utilities has issued the following information:
Storm Christoph is impacting the region, with flooding expected in some places.
Several organisations can help you with flooding. We can help with sewer flooding.
Please report internal sewer flooding to us as soon as possible and we’ll get a team out to you as soon as we can.
• You should report cases of highway flooding to your local council.
• You should contact the Environment Agency if you’re affected by river or stream flooding.
• You can check Met Office weather warnings.
In a statement, Wirral Council provided the following travel update, “Due to Storm Christoph making an appearance, there has been some road surface water flooding across Wirral.
If you are making an essential journey, please note the below travel updates:
- A553 Birkenhead Road, Meols near the kennels and on Barn Hey Crescent – temporary traffic signal control
- A5137 Brimstage Road, Brimstage – full road closure
- China Farm Lane, Newton – full road closure
- Hargrave Lane, Raby Mere Road and Upper Raby Road
- B5151 Willaston Road/Clatterbridge Road, Clatterbridge
- Whitehouse Lane, Heswall under railway bridge
- A551 Barnston Road, Barnston near Fox & Hound
- Arrowe Brook Lane, Greasby between Hill Bark Road & Arrowe Brook Rd
Only travel if essential and, if you have to drive, take extra care.“
A spokesperson for the Prime Minister said, “The Environment Agency is on the ground now working with local partners and stand ready to respond to any flooding.
“They have already ensured there are 40km (25 miles) of temporary barriers, which they are ready to deliver anywhere in the country and that is alongside high-powered pumps and trained staff who are ready to assist and provide information to local communities.”
