Schools close throughout England as month's worth of rain falls in just one day causing 87 flood warnings

Schools across England have been forced to close after the country endured a month’s worth of rain in 24 hours

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Holly Bishop

By Holly Bishop


Published: 23/09/2024

- 13:49

Some affected areas could see up to 120mm of rain fall

Schools across England have been forced to close after the country endured a month’s worth of rain in 24 hours.

The Met Office has issued an amber rain alert for parts of central and South West England which is in place until 9pm tonight, whilst 87 flood notifications have been put into place.

A yellow warning is running concurrently, which covers parts of Wales, much of the south of England, the Midlands and into North West England and Yorkshire, and some affected areas could see up to 120mm of rain. This is in place until midnight.

Forecasters have also warned that there could be additional weather alerts throughout the week.

Scenes of the flooding/bad weather

Flooding has taken place across large parts of the country

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The Met Office cautioned: “Homes and businesses may be flooded, causing damage to some buildings.”

Adding that there's “a possibility that some communities will be cut off by flooded roads”.

The Environment Agency also issued 76 alerts for 'possible' flooding and 13 warnings for 'expected' flooding.

The Met Office chief meteorologist, Frank Saunders, said some areas covered by the amber weather alert could be hit worse than others.

“It all depends on where, and if, the weather system responsible for the heavy rain stalls and pivots.

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Met Office map shows amber rain alert

Met Office map of impacted areas

Met Office
Wet weather

Forecasters have also warned that there could be additional weather alerts throughout the week

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“However, within this warning period – which encompasses two rush hours – some localities will probably see between 50 and 80mm of rain, while there’s the possibility that a few could experience in excess of 100mm of rain.”

Commuters experienced travel chaos with roads shut, tube lines part-suspended, and disruption to train lines.

Meanwhile, some parents have been struggling to find childcare, after severe flooding in parts of Oxfordshire, Bedfordshire, Gloucestershire, Warwickshire and Hertfordshire has caused schools to close.

Wet weather

Commuters experienced travel chaos with roads shut, tube lines part-suspended, and disruption to train lines

PA

Flooding

The Environment Agency has also issued 76 alerts for 'possible' flooding and 13 warnings for 'expected' flooding

PA

Here are some of the impacted schools throughout the country.

Oxfordshire

  • Bladon Church of England Primary School, Woodstock
  • Frank Wise School, Banbury
  • Lord Williams's School, Thame
  • St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Thame
  • Warriner School, Banbury

Bedfordshire

  • Harlington Lower and Upper School, Dunstable
  • Lincroft Academy, Oakley
  • Manshead Academy, Dunstable
  • Parkfields Middle School, Toddington
  • Sundon Lower School, Sundon Lower

Gloucestershire

  • Chosen Hill School, Churchdown
  • Hatherley Infant School, Gloucester
  • Sherborne C of E Primary School, Cheltenham
  • Tewkesbury CE Primary School, Tewkesbury

Warwickshire

  • Acorns Primary School, Long Compton

Hertfordshire

  • Sir John Lawes, Harpenden
Wet weather

The dreary weather has marked the official end to summer

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The Met Office meteorologist Jonathan Vautrey said: “We could see over a month’s worth of rain falling, and with the rain we’ve already seen over the last couple of days this certainly has the potential to bring some disruption and flooding in locations, and here it is very important we do take care over the course of the day.”

The Environment Agency has warned of “significant” flooding on Monday across parts of England. Flood duty manager Sarah Cook said “persistent heavy rain and thunderstorms” could lead to some property flooding and travel disruption.

She said: “Persistent heavy rain and thunderstorms could lead to significant surface water flooding on Monday across parts of England.

“The impacts could include localised flooding in urban areas and fast-responding catchments, including some property flooding as well as travel disruption. The risk from river flooding remains low.

“Environment Agency teams are out on the ground and ready to support local authorities in responding to surface water flooding.

“We urge people to plan their journeys carefully, follow the advice of local emergency services on the roads and not to drive through flood water – it is often deeper than it looks and just 30cm of flowing water is enough to float your car.”

The dreary weather has marked the official end to summer, with the autumn equinox on Sunday afternoon signalling the start of the new season.

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