New blow for flood hit areas

» Double impact of snow & rain

STORM Dennis will be even worse than Ciara, which devastated the UK last week, experts have warned.

They said yesterday it would be a “perfect storm” of wet ground, snow and heavy rain.

The threat levels were raised for the 1,200-mile front of Storm Dennis – dubbed Dennis the Menace – as downpours and snow could bring travel chaos.

The Environment Agency is urging people to sign up to its flood warnings service and called on those in areas liable to flooding to have a plan.

Director of Flood Prevention, John Curtin, said: “We’ll get that double impact of melting snow and heavy rain. The ground is saturated from Storm Ciara.

“There was some snowfall in the Pennines and parts of Cumbria, and that snow will melt at the same time.”

Despite the storm itself being less intense, they believe it will affect more properties than the 800 hit by Storm Ciara.

Paul Gundersen, of the Met Office said: “Storm Dennis is not expected to be as severe as Ciara. Disruption is still likely.”

Northern England, the near the River Calder, West Yorks, were left fuming at the Tories’ failure to stop traumatic floods for the third time since 2012 after it burst its bank.

Homes and livelihoods were destroyed as the river swept through some £33million flood defences that are not finished.

The Environment Agency highlighted flood prevention work they had already begun in

Bradford-on-Avon, Billington, Ribchester, Frankwell, Shrewsbury, York and Ilkley. More than 500 staff are on active incident duty and 30 mobile pumps have been deployed.

Network Rail advised passengers to expect disruption on many routes and allow more time for their journeys.

Tracks could be flooded as the ground near parts of the railway is already saturated.

Network Rail passenger director, Jake Kelly, said: “Storm Ciara dumped a month-and-ahalf of rain on us.”

And a man called Storm Denniss has been hounded by people on Facebook pleading with him not to wreak havoc. Storm, 24, from Whitby, North Yorks, said: “I found it hilarious.”