Britons hit by record January rainfall as Storm Chandra causes travel chaos and flooding

Storm Chandra has brought widespread disruption across the UK with many roads flooded, hundreds of school closures and dozens of flights cancelled – as parts of the country brace for icy weather on Wednesday morning.

The storm has broken January daily rainfall records, with drivers being urged to check for road closures and avoid travelling on flooded roads. 

The southwest of England was among the worst-hit regions, after two severe flood warnings were issued in Devon and Dorset on Tuesday, with firefighters called in to rescue several people from their vehicles. 

On Tuesday night, Somerset Council declared a major incident over “extensive flooding”, with an estimated 50 properties still impacted by flooding across Ilminster, West Coker, Taunton, Mudford and West Camel.

It comes ahead of yellow warnings issued by the Met Office for ice on Wednesday morning, covering much of England and Northern Ireland. A yellow weather warning for rain is also in place for southwest England on Thursday, with further rain potentially bringing more flooding and transport disruption.

Richard Foord, the Liberal Democrat MP for Honiton and Sidmouth, described the flooding situation as “truly horrendous”. “The River Otter has reached its highest recorded ever level. The Environment Agency has issued a severe flood warning on the River Otter, meaning possible danger to life,” he said.

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As of Tuesday evening, there were 93 flood warnings in place across England, meaning flooding is expected, along with 237 flood alerts, meaning flooding could be possible. There were also 17 flood alerts and two flood warnings in place in Wales, and eight flood alerts and three flood warnings issued across Scotland.

The Met Office confirmed that Storm Chandra has caused several parts of the country to set new January daily rainfall records, including in Katesbridge, Northern Ireland, which saw 100.8mm of rain.

The storm sparked travel chaos, with dozens of flights cancelled across Scotland and Northern Ireland on Tuesday. Ferry sailings and train journeys were also affected throughout the day and several roads still remain closed. 

The first danger-to-life flood warning was issued at Ottery St Mary in Devon at 5.49am on Tuesday, as River Otter at Fenny Bridges reached its highest recorded level, exceeding the previous record set in December 2000. This warning has now been lifted.

The second danger-to-life warning was put in place for the Upper Frome at Dorchester on Tuesday afternoon, where floodwater is expected to be deep and fast-flowing.

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Firefighters in Devon have so far rescued 25 people from their vehicles. Earlier, a Devon and Cornwall Police spokesperson said there was “significant surface water and areas of flooding across parts of the force” area and warned drivers in Exeter, East and Mid Devon not to travel.

They said: “We are experiencing an increase in reports of people coming up against floodwater. Please do not attempt to drive through it. The weather is improving but rivers are still responding to earlier heavy rainfall.”

In Somerset, council leader Bill Revans, on declaring a major incident, said: “We know many communities have been impacted and our thoughts go to all those experiencing flooding. We’ve had teams working through the night and we are continuing to respond to many reports of roads which remain impassable. Please avoid travelling if you can and never attempt to drive through flood water.”

In the Republic of Ireland, energy provider ESB reported that around 20,000 homes, farms and businesses were left without power. Northern Ireland Electricity said outages peaked at 9am, when around 10,000 properties were without supply.

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More than 350 schools were confirmed to be closed in Northern Ireland, alongside 47 in Devon, and a woman was taken to the hospital after a tree fell on a car in the Snowhill Road area in Lisbellaw.

Chris Wilding, the flood duty manager at the Environment Agency said: "Environment Agency teams are out on the ground, taking action to reduce the impact of flooding and support those communities affected.

“We urge people not to drive though flood water – it is often deeper than it looks and just 30cm of flowing water is enough to float your car.”