Flood alerts remain across Britain as rain eases

High tides and gales battered the east coast at Scarborough at the weekend

Flood warnings remain in place across parts of Britain as the heavy rain is expected to ease off.

There are 10 flood warnings, mostly in eastern England, and more than 100 flood watches across England and Wales.

Over the weekend, up to 25mm (1in) of rain fell in some places and winds reached 40 to 50mph in parts of Kent and East Anglia.

The UK escaped the 87mph winds that lashed parts of Spain, Portugal and France, killing at least 50 people.

The Environment Agency has issued 10 flood warnings, which indicate homes and businesses are at risk of flooding, for eastern England, north-east England and southern England.

Coldest winter

There are 106 less serious flood watches affecting nearly all of England and Wales. They indicate that low-lying land and roads could become flooded.

Two flood watches are currently in force in Scotland for the east coast from Peterhead to Berwick, and the Solway Firth from the Esk Estuary to Loch Ryan.

The Met Office also released provisional figures showing the UK winter has been the coldest for more than 30 years.

The mean UK temperature was 1.5C, the lowest since 1978/79 when it was 1.2C.

However, in Scotland and Northern Ireland, the winter has been the coldest since 1962/63.

Localised flooding

Although the UK caught only the tail of the storm which wreaked havoc in parts of Europe, many areas saw torrential downpours.

On the Isle of Wight, 25mm (1in) of rainfall was recorded on Sunday.

The flooding risk rose after days of heavy rain left river levels high and the ground saturated.

If flooding does occur in your area, it's best to stay out of flood water. It's often dirty and if it's fast flowing, can be extremely dangerous David Beddlington Environment Agency France declares storms 'disaster'

Localised flooding disrupted trains in and out of London.

Southern Railway said services between London Victoria and East Croydon were disrupted due to flooding in the Clapham Junction area.

South West Trains said flooding at Fulwell, south-west London, caused delays to trains between London Waterloo and Shepperton via Wimbledon.

The Environment Agency has been urging people in the affected areas to be prepared.

"If flooding does occur in your area, (it's) best to stay out of flood water. Flood water is often contaminated, it's often dirty and if it's fast-flowing, can be extremely dangerous," said the agency's David Beddlington.

The agency closed the Thames Barrier twice in less than 24 hours.

It was last closed at 2200 GMT on Sunday to protect London from a combined high tide and tidal surge which was expected to raise the water by a further 50cm (20in).

A spokesman said current weather patterns showed a substantial surge event in the North Sea, with large waves still a possibility in exposed coastal areas on Monday.

The rain is expected to clear on Monday and much of the UK will see some sunshine although there could be light, scattered wintry showers over northern and western areas.

Tuesday is also expected to be dry and sunny but the weather could turn colder by the end of the week.

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