10/02/2009 - Weather causes more disruptions
Businesses are bracing themselves for another set of weather-related costs as winter storms battering England and Wales cause flooding and power cuts.
A week after heavy snowfall crippled the road network, costing the country millions through lost days, heavy rain is now sweeping across southern England. Some areas recorded close to their monthly average rainfall for February in just 24 hours, forecasters said.
And the country has not seen the last of the snow either, as flurries stretching from South Wales into the Midlands have left up to 3,000 homes and businesses without electricity in Gloucestershire, Worcestershire and Herefordshire.
A total of 95 flood warnings have been issued by the Environment Agency, including one severe flood warning for the Rivers Chelmer and Can at Chelmsford in Essex. This comes as winds of up to 60mph were reported in coastal areas.
Head of flood defences, Craig Woolhouse, said the risk of floods was created by a combination of heavy rain, snow melt and "tide-locking" of rivers caused by high tides off the southern coast of England. But he said he did not expect widespread flooding on the scale seen in the summer of 2007.
Copyright © Press Association 2009
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