Met Office's Storm Bert warning slammed as major incident declared

The leader of a Welsh council has slammed the Met Office over the lack of "dangerous" weather warnings ahead of Storm Bert. The storm caused massive flooding in the Rhondda Cynon Taff area, affecting more than 200 properties.

Speaking in a press conference held in Pontypridd today, November 24, Cllr Andrew Morgan said he was "amazed" there wasn't a red weather warning. A major incident was declared for Rhondda Cynon Taf as properties were flooded, roads were closed and residents were told to boil their water as rain continued to pour from Saturday, November 23, to today.

He said: "In terms of the weather warning I am amazed there was only a yellow weather warning issued. We absolutely thought on Saturday… when we were preparing for the possibility of an amber weather warning, it didn’t come. We took the decision ourselves to step up our resources. I’m surprised there wasn’t a red warning. I do think that will need to be reviewed.

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"When you consider the amount of rain that came today and the flooding we’ve seen, I’m amazed there hasn’t been a red warning. That is something certainly as a local authority we’ll be raising directly with the Met Office."

When asked whether he believed lives were at risk, he said: "Absolutely. When you’ve got a river flooding in people's houses and we are asking the fire service to rescue people by boat then clearly lives are at risk."

He said during Storm Dennis in February 2020, which also saw significant flooding in the Rhondda Cynon Taf, both a yellow and red weather warning were issued. In total between 200 and 300 homes, both residential and commercial, have been affected by flooding in the Rhondda Cynon Taf during Storm Bert.

The Met Office sent out a yellow weather warning early this morning which warned of "further heavy rain" which was "likely cause some travel disruption and flooding" between 6am and 1pm. The Office said there were "a number of warnings in place ahead of the system reaching the UK" and that the warnings "highlighted the potential for homes and businesses to flood with fast flowing or deep floodwater was possible, causing a danger to life."

Simon Brown, Services Director at the Met Office told WalesOnline: "Our thoughts are with those who are currently affected with the impacts caused by Storm Bert in South Wales, as well as the rest of the country. As always with a named storm, a full assessment of the forecast and warning strategy will take place with our partners. But this assessment is carried out post event, therefore, I would expect this to take place over the coming days.

"Storm Bert was well forecast, 48 hours in advance, with a number of warnings in place ahead of the system reaching the UK. We work closely with partners to assess the potential risks of extreme weather and the warnings covering Wales highlighted the potential for homes and businesses to flood with fast flowing or deep floodwater was possible, causing a danger to life."