Storm Bert: 'Major incident' declared as heavy rain continues and snow thaws

More weather warnings are in place, with fear that floodwater could cause danger to life as Storm Bert continues to wreak disruption across the country in what the Met Office described as a 'multi-hazard event'.

Heavy rain and thawing snow are combining to bring flooding across the UK with around 200 flood alerts in place across the UK.

A major incident has been declared in the Rhondda Cynon Taf area of South Wales, which has been one of the worst-hit areas with 80% of a month’s rain falling in less than 48 hours, affecting between 200 and 300 properties with flooding.

Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council said the impact of the flooding was “looking to be more significant than the severe impact experienced during Storm Dennis” in 2020 and that the weather was worse than forecast.

Council leader Andrew Morgan told a press conference he was "amazed" that only a yellow weather warning was issued, rather than a more severe red warning, adding: "We took the decision ourselves to step up our resources and have depots open and crews in."

Three men died on the roads in other parts of the UK during the stormy weather, while an 11-month old baby was reportedly rescued from a car submerged by flood water in West Yorkshire.

Police in Trefiw, North Wales searching for missing 75-year-old dog-walker Biran Perry announced on Sunday that a body had been found, bringing the storm's death toll to four.

The Met Office said there is potential for fast flowing or deep floodwater to cause danger to life on Sunday after heavy downpours and howling winds battered much of the country.

A yellow wind warning is in force for large parts of England, with gusts of up to 65mph expected in some places, while another yellow warning for rain remains in place for much of south-west of England, where the Met Office is warning some communities may be cut off by flooded roads.

Dozens of red flood warnings have been issued, meaning flooding is expected and residents and business owners should “act now”.

Read more: Your pictures: Storm Bert brings snow, wind and rain to UK (BBC News)

Four people dead

A man in his 60s died after a tree fell on a car on the A34 near Winchester, Hampshire Police said.

The force was called at 7.47am on Saturday to the southbound carriageway between Kings Worthy and Winnall and found the driver of a black Mercedes E350 dead at the scene. Officers are investigating whether the incident was linked to the storm.

Two other fatal collisions happened while the storm took hold in England. West Yorkshire Police said a 34-year-old man died in a single-vehicle collision in the early hours of Saturday.

It is unclear if the incident was related to Storm Bert but it is understood the road was not affected by ice.

Meanwhile in Northamptonshire, a man in his 40s died in a crash on the A45 near Flore. Northamptonshire Police said the collision, at around 8.20am on Saturday, involved a silver Toyota Corolla and a dark grey Hyundai i30 Active. Again, it is not clear whether the incident was linked to the storm.

In North Wales, police said on Sunday afternoon that a body had been found in an area of Gower Road, Trefiw, near the Afon Conwy river, where 75-year-old Brian Perry went missing on Saturday while walking his dog. The body has not been formally identified but Perry’s family has been informed.

Chief Inspector Simon Kneale, of North Wales Police, said: "I would like to thank the efforts of all agencies involved in the searches in very difficult conditions and for the local community who supported the teams in the area. Our thoughts are with the family at this difficult time and they have asked that their privacy is respected.”

Elsewhere in North Wales, five adults and five children had to be rescued from a house in Llanarmon Dyffryn Ceiriog, near Llangollen in north Wales, following a landslide, the fire and rescue service said.

West Midlands Fire Service said its crews rescued a person trapped in a car stranded in floodwater in Walsall on Sunday morning, while the Telegraph reported that an 11-month-old baby had to be rescued from a car stuck in floodwater in Todmorden, West Yorkshire.

Travel disruption

Storm Bert continued to cause travel disruption on Sunday after leaving trains and ferries cancelled on Saturday and some roads closed.

Ferry operator DFDS cancelled services on some routes until Monday, including its Newhaven to Dieppe sailings, while rail operators cancelled services on some routes all day on Saturday and urged passengers to check their routes before making journeys.

Avanti West Coast cancelled its service between Edinburgh and Carlisle all day on Saturday with the next direct service from Carlisle not scheduled to run until Sunday afternoon.

Train journeys to and from Manchester Piccadilly were disrupted on Saturday evening as flooding between Macclesfield and Stoke-on-Trent blocked some lines.

Roads were also left closed in Saturday. In Wales, the A40 was closed due to a fallen tree, impacting road users from Sennybridge to Brecon, according to Dyfed-Powys Police.

In south-east Wales, Gwent Police reported on Sunday morning that diversions were in place on the A465 from Merthyr Tydfil towards Tredegar due to flooding.

Thousands of homes were also without power on Saturday as strong winds tore down power lines.

Northern Powergrid said 27,000 customers were affected in the North East, Yorkshire and northern Lincolnshire.

In a post on X on Saturday evening, Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said: “My thoughts are with all those affected by Storm Bert. For those who have lost power, my department will be keeping in close touch with the energy companies as they seek to ensure it is restored as swiftly as possible and help those affected.”

The forecast for this week

According to the Met Office, Storm Bert won't start to clear until Monday at least, with the unsettled weather continuing into the week.

The forecaster said: "Storm Bert is quite slow moving and only really clears from Monday. The start of the week will continue to be unsettled, with strong winds and showers in the forecast. Although temperatures will be around average for most places, strong winds mean it will feel rather cold.

"Looking further ahead, there are indications we could see a brief return to colder conditions although for many, it will be drier than of late.

"How long the more settled conditions last is uncertain, with rain probably returning to western areas at least by the end of the week."

Storm Bert: More than 750 homes without power in Taunton (Somerset County Gazette)