LONDON (AP) – Parts of the United Kingdom (UK) were flooded as heavy rains and powerful winds continued to disrupt New Year’s celebrations.
Several communities in the Manchester area were flooded, with several homes evacuated and cars submerged up to their roofs on roads and in parking lots after nearly a month’s worth of rain fell in two days.
A major incident was declared and mountain rescue teams were called in to help firefighters respond to swamped properties and stranded vehicles, Greater Manchester Police said.
“There’s still probably likely to be further flooding across the course of the day,” meteorologist Tom Morgan said. “We are potentially expecting the flood situation to get worse before it gets better.”
Tom Coulthard said the rain started late Tuesday afternoon and poured all night where he lives south of Manchester, topping river banks and forcing a hotel to be evacuated before dawn. Roads and highways were closed in the area.
