Environment Agency staff working with local partners, including the emergency services and local authorities, are continuing to support communities that have been affected by flooding after Storm Desmond hit last weekend.

However, with the ground is saturated in many areas, river levels are still high and responding to further rainfall. More heavy rain overnight has seen the Lake District village of Glenridding the focus of a “multi-agency” response including the military and fire services as it flooded once again once again after the river overspilled its banks. Yesterday, a further 50mm of rain fell in 12 hours. High river flows caused gravel deposits to wash into the river which, combined with the heavy rainfall, contributed to the flooding.

The Environment Agency has sent 22 pumps from other parts of the country to Cumbria and Lancashire, and Northumberland Durham and Tees areas as recovery from the exceptional floods gets underway. 

A high-volume pump, operated by Highways England, was one of the first on the scene in the North West following an initial request from the government’s National Resilience team on Saturday when Storm Desmond hit northern England.

It was deployed to Warwick Road in Carlisle, following a request from the Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service, where contractors working on behalf of Highways England cleared more than 1 million litres of water from the area.

The team cleared 3,000 litres of water per minute for around 7 hours in challenging weather conditions and darkness after a power failure in the area due to the storm.

Highways England is the only authority apart from the fire service to own a high volume pump of this type. Located at Bradbury in Yorkshire, the pump has to be operated by a specially trained team. It can be set up in less than an hour to clear thousands of litres of water from flooded areas and can be deployed by Highways England anywhere in the UK in the event of severe flooding.

As of 12:00, there is 1 severe flood warning for St. Michaels in Lancashire following further heavy rainfall last night, which caused river levels to rise. The Environment Agency said its teams had worked day and night with partners to repair the flood embankment and operated both the Garstang and Catterall flood basins overnight.

Kate Marks, Environment Agency deputy director in Flood and Coastal Risk Management, said:

“Following the exceptional rainfall last weekend in the North of England, rivers are high and the ground is saturated, so we ask people to remain vigilant with further rainfall expected."

“Environment Agency staff are out in communities, taking action with the emergency services and local authorities, checking and maintaining flood defences, clearing blockages in rivers, monitoring water levels and working with local flood wardens in the areas worst affected."

Figures from a rain gauge at Honister in the Lake District showed a UK record 341mm of rain had fallen in 24 hours over the weekend. The average rainfall for Cumbria for the month of December is 146.1mm, the Met Office said.