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A major incident has been declared in the aftermath of Storm Claudia, with more rain and flooding expected across Britain and Ireland on Saturday.
Four severe flood warnings had been issued by Natural Resources Wales as of 6am. This means there was a “significant risk to life and significant disruption to the community is expected”.
A yellow weather warning for rain across central and northern England, the south-west and Wales, expired at 6am on Satuday.
South Wales fire and rescue declared a major incident in the early hours of Saturday after “severe and widespread” flooding across the town and surrounding communities.
Crews are working alongside Gwent police, ambulance services, mountain rescue, the coastguard and neighbouring fire and rescue services to carry out welfare checks, evacuations and rescues.
The fire service area manager Matt Jones said conditions remained challenging owing to fast-moving water, blocked roads and pressure on infrastructure. He said: “This is a large-scale incident, and our crews and partners have been working tirelessly through the night and into today to help those affected.
“I want to thank everyone involved for the professionalism and care they continue to show in very difficult circumstances. I would urge the public to avoid the Monmouth area completely where possible.
“The flooding is significant and we need to keep routes clear to allow emergency services to reach the people who need us most. If you are in immediate danger with threat to life or property, or need urgent assistance, please call 999.”
According to the Met Office, patchy rain and drizzle will continue across England and Wales, while Northern Ireland and Scotland can expect drier, brighter conditions with some sunny spells.
The Met Office meteorologist Honor Criswick said: “Overnight [on] Saturday and throughout the course of Sunday, we will start to see winds changing to be a bit more northerly, introducing a lot of Arctic air.
“Clouds will clear throughout the course of the day so it will allow for some sunshine, but with it, it’s going to be turning much colder. I think people are really going to notice a chill into Sunday and feeling cold in many areas.
“Things are starting to turn less stormy, a bit brighter, but it’s going to be feeling a lot colder and, as we head into next week, we’ll see a continuation of that.”
The UK Health Security Agency issued a cold weather warning for parts of the Midlands and northern England from Monday. Disruption is expected until Saturday and National Rail has advised travellers to check before they travel.
On the roads, the storm also hit rail replacement services and roadside assistance companies reported a busy day with a high number of callouts on Friday.
In Northern Ireland, a yellow-level rain warning is in place in counties Armagh and Down until noon on Saturday, bringing a risk of flooding and hazardous travelling conditions. It comes as power outages were reported in Ireland, with many businesses and homes left cut off.
A status orange rain warning was in place for counties Dublin, Wexford and Wicklow until 8am, while a status yellow rain warning was in place in 10 other counties, mostly along the east and south coasts.
