Dunstable high-street left underwater as heavy rain batters England amid fresh wave of flood warnings

23 September 2024, 05:39 | Updated: 23 September 2024, 07:30

A high street was left underwater after heavy rain battered England as the Met Office warned of thunder and flooding across the country.

Streets have been left underwater in towns in Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire after six weeks of rainfall in 12 hours on Sunday afternoon bringing the summer to an end.

Pictures on social media showed streets in Dunstable and Hitchin amid a deluge of downpours as cars and streets were left submerged.

Bedfordshire Police said it closed off part of the High Street due to "substantial flooding". The A421 near Bedford was also closed westbound, between the A6 and Marston Moretaine, following the flooding.

Dunstable, Flitwick, Cranfield and Marston Moretaine were experiencing flooding, Central Bedfordshire Council said.

An amber weather warning for heavy rain came into force last night in parts of Wales, the south of England, the Midlands and Yorkshire.

Thunder, lightning and hail marked the official end to summer over the weekend, with the autumn equinox on Sunday afternoon signalling the start of the new season.

And this morning, an amber warning was confirmed at 5am, lasting until 9pm, covering Worcester, Birmingham, Nottingham and Hull.

13 separate areas across England have been issued flood warnings on Monday.

Some affected areas could see 100 to 120mm of rain on Monday and forecasters warned there may be more warnings in the week ahead.

Met Office meteorologist Jonathan Vautrey said: "First thing on Monday morning then we see an amber weather warning come into force.

"It stretches between Herefordshire, Gloucestershire and up towards the Wash and the Humber.

"This area in particular, during Monday, we could see over a month's worth of rain falling, and with the rain we've already seen over the last couple of days this certainly has the potential to bring some disruption and flooding in locations and here it is very important we do take care over the course of the day.

"There is a broader yellow rain warning that encompasses much other areas of England and Wales as well."

It came as a 200-mile-wide storm was set to cover much of the country for the whole day on Sunday, with 45 flood warnings and alerts in place. The yellow warning for rain remains in place until midnight on Monday.

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Up to three inches of rain was expected to fall in some parts of the country, according to forecasters on Sunday.

It comes after thunder and lightning, hail and rain struck various parts of the country on Saturday, including Luton, Bedfordshire, St Albans in Hertfordshire, and Cornwall, with heavy downpours in London, Wales and Birmingham.

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A weather warning for rain has come into force lasting all of Sunday for Wales and central south-west England, and another on Monday, stretching to cover areas further east and further north.

Met Office meteorologist Jonathan Vautrey said: "With Sunday marking the autumnal equinox summer has now officially come to an end, and it ended with a bang for some of us.

"We've seen some very heavy showers and thunderstorms spreading their way in across southern areas of England, into parts of Wales as well during the course of today.

"This evening, those will continue to rumble their way on a bit, spreading again into parts of Midlands, Wales, then maybe just clipping the far south of Northern Ireland as well.

"Into the early hours of tomorrow morning we'll also see our next batch of thundery rain moving its way into southern areas of England as well."

He continued: "We do then have a rain warning in force throughout Sunday for this band of rain that's going to be moving across Wales, central southern areas of England.

"Some very heavy pulses are possible with some surface water issues, travel disruption, so it is worth taking care if you are out and about or travelling during the day."