Flooding hits roads and rail amid days of heavy rain
ROADS and rail tracks across North Wales were hammered by strong winds and hours of torrential rain through the end of last week and into the weekend.
Flood waters closed the A55 on Anglesey on Thursday and train services between Holyhead and Bangor were suspended.
The A499 road between Pwllheli and Llanbedrog was blocked by surface water and a flood alert issued for nearby Afon Rhyd-hir. It was one of five flood alerts in North Wales.
For a while the A4086 near Llanberis was closed, as was the B5109 between Trefor and Bodffordd. The historic Ffestiniog Railway line at Plas y Nant, near Llyn Gwellyn, Gwynedd, was submerged as river levels on the Afon Gwyrfai rose rapidly.
By late afternoon, traffic website Inrix reported the A499 near Pwllheli was “just passable”.
It reported: “Traffic coping well.
“Road was closed, however sensors show traffic able to pass.”
At 5pm, however, Gwynedd Council issued a social media statement saying the A499 between Pwllheli and Llanbedrog was still closed.
Roads on Anglesey, where a flood alert covered all of the island’s rivers, were particularly badly affected. The A5 at Pentraeth was closed for a while, and the A5025 near Moelfre was described as “nearly impassable”, even for 4x4 vehicles.
Parts of Llangefni were flooded, near the 2 Sisters poultry plant, where the Afon Cefni was close to breaking its banks.
The A5 was also inundated at Gwalchmai; at least one caravan park on the island was under water.
On Facebook, one person added: “Roads horrendous from Llanfaethlu to Valley. Turned around and went home.”
Another said they had “never seen so much flooding” on Anglesey, with few parts of the island being spared.
As the wind picked up, speed limits on the Britannia Bridge were lowered to 30mph.
By lunchtime the A55 itself was closed, between junctions 4-5 (RAF Valley to Rhosneigr), with traffic diverted through Bryngwran, leading to long tailbacks.
Thursday’s heavy rainfall and an ominous forecast also caused planned overnight roadworks to be cancelled on the A55 between St Asaph and Abergele.
The Met Office issued a yellow rain warning for every council area in North Wales except Flintshire, with disruption to travel.
According to Natural Resources Wales, areas that were at risk of “some localised flooding problems from surface water” included: Afon Rhos-Hir: At Riverside Terrace in Pwllheli;
North Gwynedd catchment area: Areas around the rivers of North West Wales, from Abergwyngregyn to Aberdaron.
Conwy catchment: Areas around the river Conwy from
Dolwyddelan to Conwy.
Glaslyn and Dwyryd catchment: Areas around the river Glaslyn and river Dwyryd, from Dyffryn Ardudwy to Nant Gwynant.
Anglesey catchment: Areas around the rivers across the whole island.
Flooding returned to many parts on Friday as heavy rain battered the west of the region as forecast for the second day running.
The A499 near Pwllheli was blocked again and trains between Bangor and Holyhead were replaced by buses on Friday afternoon, with many roads blocked or only passable with care in Bangor, Llandudno, Deganwy and Llandudno Junction, with queues developing on the A55 near St Asaph as ground water made for slow going.
Natural Resources Wales lifted flood alerts for a string of North Wales river catchment areas yesterday afternoon as the weather eased, but further heavy rainfall through the weekend saw fresh alerts for catchments across much of North-west Wales, including: Conwy Catchment
Glaslyn & Dwyryd Catchment
River Erch at Abererch Anglesey Catchment North Gwynedd Catchment.