New weather warnings as water levels still rising

Water is still rising in parts of Somerset despite a dry night and all available emergency pumps being switched on.

A major incident has been declared in the county as data from the Somerset Levels show water levels have hit 4.36m (14.3ft) - almost 1m (3.2ft) above the top of its normal range following heavy rain during Storm Chandra earlier this week.

The water is continuing to rise, with a yellow weather warning for further rain in place for most of the county from 12:00 GMT on Thursday.

A spokesman for the Environment Agency (EA) said: "We are monitoring minute by minute and doing everything we can with our pumps to protect these villages."

The Somerset Rivers Authority said that all six extra pumps installed at Northmoor Pumping Station are operating, but those positioned upstream near Burrowbridge cannot be switched on until river levels drop.

"There is a lot of water on the moors around Langport and Muchelney, and the moors continue to fill. Levels are being closely monitored," it said.

Ian Withers, Wessex area director for the EA, told BBC Somerset there was a little bit of respite on Wednesday.

He added: "We are in a good situation in that we now have pumps operating and we will use them very carefully and judiciously over the next few days to make sure that incoming water, particularly into Northmoor, is evacuated as soon as it gets down to the pumping station."

Withers said "with a bit of luck" Thursday's rain would not exacerbate the situation too much.

"It's such a saturated county that every little bit of rain is causing more frustration but I think in reality what this rain will do is just top the rivers up a little bit," he said.

Paula Baker, a resident in Fordgate only moved there less than a year ago.

She told the BBC she was "very, very anxious".

"I should be in Northern Ireland now for work but I got an alert text message warning us the land could flood.

"Everybody is just very worried, we're going to the village hall and the EA regularly and asking why they aren't pumping, and why it has been left so late," she said.

Somerset Council declared a major incident on Tuesday, with 50 properties across the county thought to have flooded so far.

This figure is expected to rise due to the forecast rain.

A weather station at Yeovilton has recorded 136mm of rain so far this January - almost double the average of 70mm.

BBC weather forecaster Bee Tucker said: "Our wettest January on record was 2014, when we got an average of 250mm.

"Somerset may not hit that, but I think parts of the south west will hit that so I think this is looking like it's going to be the (region's) wettest January since 2014."

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