Stormy weather brings severe flood warning in northwest England

Haroon Siddique in the Guardian (UK): The Environment Agency issued a severe flood warning in the north-west this morning as heavy rain and winds hit parts of the UK. More than 115 flood warnings and flood watches were in place, with Anglia and the Thames region the only areas free of alerts.

The severe flood warning, which is expected to remain in place for a couple of days, applies to the river Irwell at Strongstry and Chatterton, near Bolton. "It's quite possible there could be flooding from the river, there is already surface water flooding," an Environment Agency spokesman said. Agency workers were at the scene trying to clear the area.

Lancashire is the main concern for the agency today, with Cumbria at highest risk tomorrow and Friday. "The ground's very wet, the rivers are rising and with heavy rain that we're expecting, in particular for Cumbria, that's where we'll be focusing our attention," the spokesman said. He advised people to keep abreast of developments by visiting the Environment Agency's website.

A number of severe weather warnings are in place. Helen Chivers, from the Met Office, said the heaviest rain was expected in northern and north-western parts of the UK. Cumbria, north Wales and south-west Scotland could see 200mm of rain on high ground over the next few days and winds of 70-75mph….

The River Irwell at Salford in January 2008, looking towards Manchester City Centre, North West England, shot by Ian Roberts, Wikimedia Commons via Flickr, under the Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.0 License