UK gov’t holds emergency session on flooding in north

A further 1,000 troops are on standby in case the situation gets worse, Downing Street said.

The Met Office has 181 flood warnings in place up and down the UK.

Some 300 military personnel had already been mobilised to help communities in Yorkshire and Lancashire struggling to tackle the flooding caused by the “unprecedented” rain seen in recent weeks.

Rescuers have been evacuating homes in York where water levels are near record levels in the historic city centre and still rising, while thousands of people in north-west England are without power.

The EA’s flood warning site allows users to input their postcode to see the level of risk for their area.

Major flooding is happening across the United Kingdom, specifically in Wales, Scotland and northern England.

Many towns and villages in the Cumbria region are still cleaning up after Storm Desmond caused damage to hundreds of homes and businesses earlier in December.

David Cameron has defended funding for flood prevention amid calls for a “complete rethink” of preparations for increasingly extreme weather. The Government must drop its complacency over the need for climate change adaptation.

Areas of Greater Manchester, including Salford, Bolton, Bury, Rochdale and Wigan, were badly affected by flooding.

The Ouse stabilised this morning at 5.7 yards above its normal level, a spokeswoman for the Environment Agency said.

A 16.5-ton barrier that can be lifted in and out of position was built to separate the two rivers and isolate the Foss from the Ouse at times of flood.

The Archbishop of York John Sentamu said flood waters were coming into his Bishopthorpe Palace residence.

Flood warnings… A man wades through flood waters at Hebden Bridge in West Yorkshire, England, Saturday Dec. 26, 2015.

Emergency workers paddled in dinghies to save stranded residents in York, with some people wading through waist-deep water carrying possessions above their heads.

“In Lancashire, every single river was at a record high”, she said.

The Government has ordered a major review of flood prevention strategy after the latest incident saw 500 troops deployed to help clean up after thousands were evacuated and others were left without power. United Kingdom astronaut Tim Peake tweeted this picture of northern England from the International Space Station (ISS).

The committee’s recommendations for “measures which would stop some of the real damage” had not been taken up, he complained.

Teams from insurance companies have been on the ground in the affected areas.

Speaking to the BBC, Truss said the priority was to save lives.

Mr Madgwick said: “We would advise people not to visit the affected areas of York and Selby at this time of high risk”.

“We really do have to look forward and put into practice what we have said so clearly at the Paris discussions, where we took a leading part”.

“We’ve been preparing with a series of Cobras through the Christmas period, so we’ve got the Army out working round the clock, as well as the Environment Agency, local authorities, to make sure that we protect lives”.