Uk At Risk Of More Flooding 'for Months To Come' - Beritaja

Parts of Britain could beryllium astatine consequence of further flooding for months to travel because truthful overmuch rainfall has fallen truthful acold this year, according to caller analysis.

Latest charismatic figures from the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (UKCEH) show rivers successful the southbound and southwest of England reached exceptionally precocious levels successful January, pinch immoderate breaking records.

And the ungraded is truthful saturated successful areas that person borne the brunt of the deluge that h2o is rising up done the crushed - an invisible threat that could abruptly flood homes.

The Environment Agency (EA) has besides warned of a important consequence of alleged groundwater flooding that could persist for months.

Mark Garratt, flood work head astatine the agency, said: "Significant groundwater flooding impacts are probable successful parts of Dorset and Wiltshire, pinch insignificant groundwater impacts probable successful Hampshire and West Sussex.

"Due to steadily rising levels, insignificant groundwater flooding impacts are imaginable successful Kent and East Sussex."

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The monthly statistic from the UKCEH corroborate that Northern Ireland and the southwest of England had their wettest January connected record, pinch 170% of their normal rainfall.

It was besides 1 of the 5 wettest Januarys since 1890 for confederate counties of England.

River levels successful the affected areas surged arsenic a result, pinch 3 reaching their highest flows for January, and 2 mounting a record.

Monitoring astatine boreholes crossed Dorset, Wiltshire, Hampshire, Sussex, and Kent besides showed that groundwater levels astatine 29 sites were supra normal.

At 28 sites levels were truthful precocious that location was a consequence of flooding from h2o rising from beneath people's homes.

And astatine 10 sites levels had reached their highest connected record.

Groundwater flooding 'can return group by surprise'

Professor Hannah Cloke, a world-leading hydrologist astatine Reading University, told Beritaja: "Groundwater flooding is invisible. It comes up done the floorboards. It seeps retired successful the mediate of the night, and group aren't expecting it.

"It's not for illustration you're surviving adjacent to a river, and you expect that flooding. So it could beryllium very serious. It could return group by surprise.

"And it is very persistent. It could past for a agelong time. So this could past for months successful immoderate of these places."

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According to the Met Office, the pitchy watercourse is lying further southbound than normal for the clip of year.

The precocious altitude winds person besides been supercharged by acold upwind successful North America, generating bands of persistent rainfall that person lingered complete parts of the UK.

Further rainfall is forecast and the EA has urged group to enactment alert to flood warnings.