Bridge Collapse Triggers Evacuation Of Homes

On Monday, British Prime Minister David Cameron visited flood-hit areas in northern England after chairing a meeting of the Cobra emergency committee to discuss its response to what West Yorkshire Police have called the “worst flooding in 70 years”.

An evacuation is under way in the north Yorkshire market town of Tadcaster where the authorities warned of a significant risk to life after a historic bridge collapsed into a swollen river.

Flooding is expected in 46 areas where less severe warnings are still in place, mainly in Yorkshire and Cumbria.

It is set to pour more misery on flood-ravaged homeowners in northern England today, with officials warning them to brace themselves for further damage from torrential rain and gale-force winds.

Tadcaster is 10 miles from York and has been affected by flooding caused by storms in recent days.

Meanwhile, in York, police condemned thieves who looted homes submerged in dirty water.

Conservative MP for Selby and Ainsty, Nigel Adams, has since stated that the government will help to re-build the bridge.

Evacuated residents and emergency personnel at the scene of the bridge collapse.

According to the Tadcaster town council website, the current bridge was built around 1700.

There is still a severe flood warning in place from the Environment agency for Tadcaster.

In a Facebook post, a spokesman said: “We are receiving reports of members of the public going to “have a look” and this is causing significant traffic issues which is hampering the joint services relief operation”. In hindsight, we shouldn’t have been on it. But I thought it was important that I showed the secretary of state the severity of the damage and the impact.

The ground is still saturated and river levels are at record highs.

Although the floodwaters have been receding, across the North, more than 6,700 homes have flooded in the past week.

The bridge has been closed to the public since Saturday.

A red weather warning has been issued for the Isle of Man overnight, with up to 100mm (four inches) of rain expected on high ground.

Calderdale Council is warning residents to only make essential journeys as the fix and clean up work continues after the devastating floods in Calderdale on Boxing Day.

Large parts of Ireland were also braced for another winter battering, weeks after Storm Desmond caused serious flooding in many areas.