UK weather latest: Hundreds of homes evacuated and RAF drafted in after major flooding in Lincolnshire

The RAF has been drafted in to help after hundreds of homes were evacuated following major flooding in Lincolnshire.

Residents in 580 properties were told to leave their homes after water levels in the River Steeping in Wainfleet became dangerously high.

RAF Chinooks dropped 270 tonnes of ballast to shore up the flood defences after the town saw more than two month of rain in just two days.

Locals could be evacuated for 48 hours after the downpour, with Lincolnshire Police advising them to take the flooding seriously.

A rest centre has been set up in Skegness for those affected.

The Environment Agency said it will continue to work with emergency services in the area over the weekend on measures to tackle the flooding.

One homeowner Jean Hart said she has lost everything after her home was flooded during heavy showers.

She watched on in horror as her house became submerged in water, ruining all her possessions.

She told the Metro: "The whole of the bottom of our house is completely gone. Everything’s floating including our beds. We recently renovated the whole of the first floor, but now everything we own is in foul water at the moment."

Dozens of flood alerts and warnings remain in place, mainly in the Midlands and north-east of England.

Meteorologist Helen Roberts said rain will move eastwards across the country throughout Saturday, adding that Wainfleet should escape the worst of it.

She said: "It will still be unsettled with further showers, but not the persistent rain that we saw earlier in the week, and we should have some warmer temperatures too."

While wet conditions are forecast across the UK, rainfall will not be as heavy and persistent as earlier in the week.

Sunday will see a similar mix of sunshine and showers - and temperatures could rise to 21C in the south-east of the country, she added.

The mercury is forecast to hit 26C on Tuesday in East Anglia, according to the Met Office, but the better conditions might be shortlived as further wet weather is in store for Wednesday.