Brace yourselves for flooding, say experts as wetter winter is forecast
WINTER is expected to be “wetter than normal”, the Met Office has warned as it urged the public to prepare for floods.
The Met Office said that rain was likely to be at its worst in January and February, based on its assessment of “the big global drivers that impact UK weather”.
The warning comes at the start of the Environment Agency’s “flood action week” to encourage the public to sign up for flood warnings, check their home’s flood risk online and, where necessary, educate themselves on what to do in the event of flooding.
Britain has already endured its rainiest summer in a decade.
The awareness drive has been prompted by research suggesting that as many as 61 per cent of households in flood-risk areas do not believe their property is at risk of flooding.
Although 70 per cent of respondents to a survey had taken some steps to prepare for their home flooding, 30 per cent had done nothing.
If replicated across England, this could mean 1.5million homes at risk of flooding were unprepared, the Environment Agency said.
It is estimated that 5.2million properties in England are at risk from floods.
Will Lang, head of civil contingencies at the Met Office, said: “Winters in the UK usually include a wide variety of weather and this winter looks to be no exception.
“However, when looking at the big global drivers that impact weather in the UK there are indications this winter could be wetter than normal.”
Mr Lang added: “Although these wetter conditions are most likely in January and February next year, details will become clearer nearer the time and information can be found on the forecast pages of our website.”
The Environment Agency said it had 250 mobile pumps and 6,000 trained staff ready to take action to protect communities from flooding, and construction and repair of flood defences had continued throughout the year.
In late October, when parts of the country had a month’s worth of rain in 24 hours, 79 households were flooded but more than 3,300 properties were protected by flood defences and action taken by the agency, it said.
At-risk groups are urged to prepare by packing medicines, insurance and other important documents if there is a flood alert, the lowest level of threat.
If this escalates to the next highest level, a flood warning, the Environment Agency recommends moving family, pets and belongings to safety, and turning off gas, water and electricity.
The most critical alert – a severe flood warning – means households should follow the advice of emergency services to survive immediate danger.
Caroline Douglass, executive director of flooding at the agency, said: “Now is the time for us all to be vigilant.”
She said its previous investment programme protected 314,000 properties from flooding, defences helped protect nearly 200,000 properties during floods since 2019 and it was investing millions in new schemes and repairs.
“We can’t prevent all flooding – climate change is only increasing that risk – and today’s figures show that while some people are prepared, many are not,” she said. “It’s vitally important for the public to go online and check if they are at risk, sign up for Environment Agency warnings, and know what to do if flooding hits.”