Heavy rain causes flooding in southern England

Heavy rain and flooding has caused severe disruption in parts of southern England, with some areas seeing nearly 2in (50mm) of rain.

The village of Cardinham in Cornwall saw 2in (52mm) of rain over 36 hours while Bastreet Downs got 2.1in (53.4mm).

Devon and Cornwall Police declared a major incident on Thursday and said downpours had caused localised flooding, with a number of roads left impassable. The A30 bypass at Hayle was temporarily closed.

Meanwhile flooding has also affected large swathes of southern England and the Midlands, with 45 flood warnings and 192 flood alerts put in place by the Environment Agency.

Yellow weather warnings for rain remain in place for large swathes of the south until midday on Sunday, but forecasters are predicting that the situation in Cornwall will improve.

A spokesman for the Met Office said: “There will be some showers around but nowhere near as much rain as today.”

But he added: “More rain is coming from the south through the night and tomorrow.

“Most of the rain will be in the eastern part, eastern England and Scotland, gradually improving throughout the day.

“It does look, as we head into next week, that the weather will turn drier.”

Some 30 flood warnings – where flooding is expected – were in place for England on Thursday evening, alongside 189 flood alerts, which warn flooding is possible.

Norfolk and Suffolk Police said parts of both counties had been inundated as of Friday morning.

The Environment Agency said it was monitoring the situation and the public were advised to remain vigilant.