Storm Dennis set to hit UK: Met Office RAISES threat levels

Flood-hit towns in West Yorkshire are loading up on sandbags as Storm Dennis threatens to batter Britain with even more rain and winds of up to 80 miles an hour tomorrow – just six days after Storm Ciara. 

The UK is suffering further downpours and snow today, before the storm dubbed Dennis the Menace causes havoc for communities and on the road and rail networks throughout Saturday and Sunday.

The 1,200-mile wide ‘perfect storm’ will bring mayhem for towns in Yorkshire’s Calder Valley, which was inundated with floodwater when Storm Ciara raged on Sunday.  

Today in Mytholmroyd, officials were seen desperately trying to prepare for the fourth named storm of the year by using constructing flood defences made of sandbags to prevent further damage. 

Dennis will develop in the North Atlantic before tracking eastwards, and passing into north Scotland on Saturday, with the country set to be blasted by winds over 60mph, and some areas getting more than 100mm of rain.

Severe amber weather warnings have already been issued for many parts of the UK this weekend, including amber warnings for rain in south west England, southern Wales, north west England and south east England.  

Paul Gundersen, Chief Meteorologist at the Met Office said: ‘Another spell of very wet and windy ​weather is expected for Saturday. Although Storm Dennis is currently not expected to be as severe as Ciara, disruption is still likely.’

The Environment Agency said the flood impact from the weather system is likely to be worse than last weekend’s Storm Ciara due to rain falling on already saturated ground. 

John Curtin, the agency’s executive director of flood and coastal risk management, said Cumbria, Lancashire and Yorkshire were the areas he was most ‘concerned’ about.

‘This [storm] could be a step up from what we have seen before,’ Mr Curtin said.

‘We had a big storm last weekend, [we now have] saturated catchments, snowmelt and rainfall, so it is a perfect storm.’

Amid Met Office weather warnings, fans of a 125-year-old football club in Selby, Yorkshire, are on tenterhooks over their team’s future.

Tadcaster Albion FC’s grounds were left under five feet of water when six week’s worth of rain fell in North Yorkshire over the weekend amid Storm Ciara.

The clubhouse was almost completely destroyed in the deluge and part of the pitch remains underwater today – nearly an entire week later.

As officials tirelessly work to repair the damage they remain fearful that this weekend’s torrential weather forecast will ruin the ground beyond repair.

Officials say they were not able to get insured after the grounds were badly damaged in 2015 floods, meaning the bill will be handed to club fans and representatives. 

Albion, founded in 1892, are currently placed sixth in the Northern Premier League North West Division, which is the eighth tier of English football.

It’s not yet known where the club will play their home games as the clear up operation gets underway.

Also hit by the bad weather was workman Ben Newberry from Leicestershire who was struck by a sheet of plywood and knocked over when it was picked up by gale-force winds. 

He was hit on the neck and knocked flat out by the impact of the wood on Tuesday before being put in a neck brace by an ambulance crew. He was rushed to hospital but eventually given the all-clear.  

Mr Newberry was taking a coffee break while working on a housing estate as wind speeds topped at 80mph – when the drama unfolded. Video shows a sheet of ply, 4ft by 4ft and weighing at least 20lbs (9kg), take off as a gust of wind strikes.    

Speaking today Ben said: ‘They were a bit worried so they took me to hospital because I couldn’t remember anything. But I’m fine now. ‘It hit me on the neck, just knocked me out for a couple of seconds. No damage done. 

‘It was just on a job and there was a floor laying firm there too. Unfortunately the wind got up and picked the ply up, came across and knocked me out.’  

Dennis verges on the most powerful North Atlantic storm since records began 196 years ago. 

The Met Office has warned of 1,200-mile wide Dennis’ five inches’ rain bringing worse rain problems than Ciara, which saw 700 properties flooded. 75mph gusts – lower than Ciara – hit from Friday night and through the weekend.    

There’s warnings that fast flowing or deep floodwater is likely, leading to threats to homes and businesses with a good chance communities will be cut off by flooded roads.

Four separate amber warnings are in place on Sunday – two which cover the south of England, one for south Wales and another in the north west of England. Saturday will be the most hazardous day. 

Weather maps predict Dennis will bring massive 50ft waves offshore, 24ft waves on South-West coasts and 20ft on North-West coasts. Storms are more powerful the lower their air pressure, maps show Dennis’ pressure plunging to an estimated 914mb at 3pm on Saturday.

The system will develop in the North Atlantic before moving eastwards over the next few days and then hitting the country on Saturday with strong gusts of over 60mph, and heavy rain on the already saturated ground, so there is a further risk of flooding.  

Four people died during Storm Ciara six days ago – a 58-year-old man, whose car was hit by a tree on the A33 in Hampshire on Sunday, a 50-year-old man who got into difficulties while with a diving party off the west coast of Scotland near Oban, and a 77-year-old man who fell in icy conditions in Clydebank, West Dunbartonshire. 

On Tuesday, a dog walker in his sixties was killed after being hit by a falling tree in Black Wood, Liverpool. 

The RAC reported its busiest days for a year, with call-outs up 20 per cent at up to 8,500-a-day this week. ‘There’s no respite with storms and snow – and more motorists will be impacted by Dennis than Ciara, as Dennis hits on Saturday rather than Sunday as Ciara did, when fewer people travel,’ said RAC spokesman Simon Williams. 

RAC patrol of the year Ben Aldous said: ‘After so much wind and rain last weekend, drivers will again have to contend with some pretty dreadful conditions on the road with the arrival of Storm Dennis.

‘With transport disruption likely, drivers should expect their journeys to take longer than usual and should stay up to date with the latest traffic and travel information, as the conditions could change quickly.

‘It’s essential motorists never attempt to drive through deep floodwater. Those that do are not just risking damage to their vehicles but risking their lives and those of their passengers.’

Further north, there were snow flurries in Alston, County Durham, and Nenthead, Cumbria, as well as up to two inches on surrounding fells.  

Hundreds of trains face being cancelled or severely delayed at the weekend, after 3,500 – 27 per cent of the UK’s train services – were axed or very late on Sunday during Ciara, Network Rail data showed. 

It has advised passengers to expect disruption on many routes due to flooding and to allow more time for their journeys.

Tracks could also be flooded as the ground near parts of the railway is already saturated, particularly in the North West.

Cross-border journeys between England and Scotland were severely restricted last weekend.

Network Rail’s network services director Nick King said: ‘As we saw last week, stormy weather brings high winds that can lead to trees and other debris falling on to the railway, and floods that prevent us from running trains on parts of the network.

‘That is why we are again asking passengers to check their journeys before they travel this weekend, either with their train operator directly or through National Rail Enquiries.

‘Our teams of engineers will again be out working at all hours and in all weathers to remove fallen trees and debris from the railway, repair damaged infrastructure and work to reopen lines affected by flooding.’

Dozens more flights face being cut, after over 1,000 were cancelled due to Storm Ciara, FlightRadar24 data showed, with Heathrow alone cancelling 472 flights and Gatwick 333.