Agency tests emergency responses

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More than 70 people have been involved in the tests

A series of exercises have been taking place to test emergency responses to flooding in the East of England.

More than 70 people are involved in the Environment Agency emergency exercise, codenamed Operation Neptune.

The exercise will involve staff issuing simulated flood warnings and providing accurate information to local people.

Teams on the ground, who often work in poor weather, will install temporary flood defences and check flood defence banks as part of the exercise.

Lorraine Bates, emergency planning officer, said: "It is important to try and test our incident response, so when it happens for real we are prepared to deal with different situations and circumstances.

Operation Neptune is part of an ongoing training programme our flood incident staff go through.

"Giving staff the opportunity to practice in the roles they carry out during the time of a real incident, ensures they are trained to the highest standard."