RAF flies in to help flood-hit Lincolnshire after two months' rain fell in 48 hours

Military helicopters are assisting emergency services in Lincolnshire after a river burst its banks following heavy rain which caused disruption to parts of the country.

A Chinook helicopter was deployed to drop sand in the town of Wainfleet in an attempt to stop the flow of water from the River Steeping which experienced a breach.

The Ministry of Defence said it will continue to assist with emergency repairs, drafting in a Puma to help tackle floods on Friday as a Joint RAF and Army unit are set to fly in almost 70 one-tonne bags of gravel.

Seventy properties were hit by flooding, but Lincolnshire County Council warned that up to 720 could be affected after it said the town had more than two months’ of rain in just two days.

Some 13 flood warnings and 46 flood alerts were in place on Friday afternoon, with the majority across the Midlands and North West.

As of June 12, the UK had seen total rainfall of 2.6in (65.7mm) since the beginning of the month.

Met Office spokesman Grahame Madge said that, despite the current treacherous conditions, June 2012 remained the wettest on record with 5.9in (149mm).

“Although we are at a point where some areas have seen their full amounts of monthly rain, so far we don’t think we’re on track to beat the 2012 record as a wet June,” he said.

“It’s something we do get now and again, which is obviously unwelcome for those people who have wanted to enjoy nicer weather.”

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Elsewhere, a landslip near Corby, Northamptonshire, stopped an East Midlands Train from London to Nottingham on Thursday and saw a second train which went to rescue them also become stuck.

Around 400 passengers were stranded for up to eight hours before being evacuated, and one person was treated at the scene in an ambulance by paramedics.

The train operator apologised to the customers involved in the incident, calling it a “challenging situation” due to rubble and serious flooding hampering rescue efforts.

Some routes were still affected on Friday morning, with National Rail engineers on site to clear the line.

Showers are expected over the weekend but conditions are due to settle down, temperatures are anticipated to rise and no further weather warnings have been issued, the Met Office said.

Warmer air building over Europe will see higher temperatures in parts of the South East next week, with the potential of sunny spells hitting the mid-20s.