UK weather forecast: Floods hit as heavy downpours spark weather warnings

Flooding is blighting the north with safety warnings issued and protective barriers put in place to stop damage to people's homes and property.

Heavy rainfall and high river levels are posing an imminent threat in some areas while in some places streets have been overflowing with water.

In London, brief hailstorms and heavy rain battered the capital.

There are 29 flood warnings and 37 flood alerts in force today.

These are across the Midlands, northern England and parts of Wales, and two alerts in the Norwich area.

The Environment Agency said crews were installing temporary defences in Shrewsbury and Bewdley, going up to Ironbridge and Wribbenhall to protect from the rising River Severn in the Midlands.

In a statement, the agency said: "We have seen localised flooding in the Calder Valley, the Greater Manchester area, York and along the River Severn.

"River levels in some areas will continue to rise over the next few days in response to recent rainfall, however the outlook is for increasingly settled and dry conditions which will allow river levels to fall quickly in all but the slowest responding rivers.

"We have officers out on the ground checking defences, clearing drainage channels and supporting affected communities."

Rainfall saw a flock of sheep have to be raced out of water which was steadily getting as deep as they were tall in Yorkshire.

While elsewhere people have seen random streams fill the paved streets in urban areas.

Testing conditions brought disruption to parts of the UK over the weekend.

Capel Curig in Caernarfonshire, Wales, has been one of the worst-hit areas and saw some 136.6mm of rain in just 24 hours - which forecasters say is the equivalent of a month's worth.

Flooding across parts of the rail network forced Northern to part-suspend services on several of its routes.

This affected people travelling in Yorkshire and the North West on Saturday.