Keep safe and dry this weekend as more rain is forecast
Warwickshire County Council is urging members of the public and motorists in particular to take care this weekend, as further heavy rain is again forecast across the county for Sunday.
A severe weather warning for Sunday has been issued by the Met Office, with a 60% chance of heavy rain in Warwickshire with 30 - 40mm of rain falling over a 6 - 9 hour period from late on Saturday evening.
Jeremy Lee, Warwickshire County Council’s Emergency Planning Manager, said: "With the ground already heavily waterlogged from previous severe weather and the river system already full, further spells of heavy rain are likely to result in flash flooding, particularly on roads which are liable to flooding - such as in troughs and dips."
Motorists are reminded that if heavy rain materialises again, making driving difficult, avoid making journeys unless they are absolutely essential.
Study your route to see if there are any areas through low ground that may be flooded and prepare an alternative route in case you are faced with deep standing water.
Remember to drive with headlights on in heavy rain and do not drive through standing water if you do not know how deep it is. Always test your brakes when you have driven through water, to dry them off.
Keep basic essentials in the car in case you become stuck in traffic jams. Keep your mobile phone charged up and keep important telephone numbers with you. Take a thermos with a hot drink in it and any medication you have to take on a regular basis. Also take a road atlas to find alternative routes and keep listening to the local radio station for up to date traffic reports.
If you do have to leave your car, try to park it at the side of the road, not in the middle as this could cause delays to the emergency services trying to get through. Always return to your car at the earliest opportunity.
If a road has been closed DO NOT ignore the signs. People attempting to drive along roads which have been closed due to flooding put themselves and others, who may have to rescue them, at risk.
Keep your speed down. Even if you can drive through standing water, if you go fast and create a bow wave you risk pushing the water into people’s homes along the roadside.
Other advice includes:
Don’t allow children to play in flood water. As well as a danger of infection there may be hidden obstacles which they may injury themselves on, and the water may have strong currents below the surface which can knock them off their feet.
Be careful when walking near to the edge of flooded water. River banks may become unstable, due to waterlogged conditions. Also you may not be aware of hidden dangers such as a sudden increase in water depth or an open drain cover under the water.
Keep a mobile phone with you and charged up in case you get into difficulties and need to call for help.
We remind everyone to stay aware of weather forecasts through http://www.metoffice.gov.uk and local TV and radio bulletins as well as calling the free Floodline service on 0845 988 1188. Updates on latest flood warning situation are also available online at: http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/flood.
In the event of further flooding Warwickshire County Council website at http://www.warwickshire.gov.uk will have a list of which roads have had to be closed.