:00:08. > :00:10.Good evening. Flooding has continued to cause
:00:11. > :00:15.major disruption across large parts of the Midlands. Flood barriers are
:00:16. > :00:19.in place in Shrewsbury, Bewdley, and Ironbridge. In Worcester, the city
:00:20. > :00:22.was effectively cut in two with the closure of the city centre bridge.
:00:23. > :00:26.The River Severn there has already reached the level of the devastating
:00:27. > :00:30.floods of 2007 and it's expected to get even higher tomorrow. Cath
:00:31. > :00:34.Mackie reports. First light in Worcester, and the
:00:35. > :00:38.sun rises revealing a city under water, and a city almost cut in two.
:00:39. > :00:42.The historic bridge, a major arterial route, was closed to
:00:43. > :00:46.traffic. In the rush hour, the city centre roads were eerily quiet. But
:00:47. > :00:52.on the outskirts thousands of commuters were forced to find
:00:53. > :00:55.another way in. The swans too were forced off`course as the river and
:00:56. > :00:58.road merged into one by Gheluvelt Park. People living nearby waded
:00:59. > :01:07.home, but at least their flood barriers were stopping the water
:01:08. > :01:12.from getting inside. The river has been up and down. I am worried about
:01:13. > :01:16.later in the week as it will come up again. Other than that...
:01:17. > :01:19.The central bus station is currently closed, and buses diverted. Road
:01:20. > :01:22.works too have been suspended. But by lunchtime, some good news ` the
:01:23. > :01:30.bridge was partially opened to traffic. People are working around
:01:31. > :01:33.the clock. Given the forecast and the amount of rain that is coming
:01:34. > :01:36.down now or could come down the river, we cannot rule out the
:01:37. > :01:38.possibility of having to close it again.
:01:39. > :01:42.With more rain expected, the river levels will be going up and down all
:01:43. > :01:47.week so we can expect more road closures and more disruption, and
:01:48. > :01:50.that'll impact on the local economy. Businesses are worried if they
:01:51. > :01:55.cannot get people into shop or eat or whatever it may be. But we have
:01:56. > :01:57.the bridge open as soon as we could. We'll keep managing it.
:01:58. > :02:02.Local businesses are hoping the message gets through. A job for
:02:03. > :02:08.anybody to get through to deliver anything to us. They have not been
:02:09. > :02:12.able to. As soon as we saw the impact yesterday, I knew it would be
:02:13. > :02:17.a quiet day today. Hopefully, it only lasts for maybe today and
:02:18. > :02:19.tomorrow and then we can get back to business.
:02:20. > :02:22.Since the big flood of 2007, millions have been spent on flood
:02:23. > :02:24.defences along the Severn, and today they held. But Worcester's
:02:25. > :02:31.floodwaters remain a wonder to behold. I have come from Manchester
:02:32. > :02:34.and it rains a lot there, but nothing like this. It is terrible.
:02:35. > :02:37.Absolutely terrible. The city may have witnessed scenes
:02:38. > :02:40.like this before, but it doesn't make it any easier.
:02:41. > :02:45.Further downstream, flood barriers have been protecting most homes in
:02:46. > :02:47.Upton`on`Severn. But there's still been serious disruption to many
:02:48. > :02:56.people's lives, with bridges closed and roads impassable. More now from
:02:57. > :03:01.Ben Sidwell. Been pulled to safety, another
:03:02. > :03:08.victim of this winter's flood. Despite defences, overnight her home
:03:09. > :03:14.and eventually succumbed to the rising water. It was coming in, yes.
:03:15. > :03:19.Everything has been lifted or taken upstairs that we can. She is not
:03:20. > :03:26.alone. One of her neighbours, who also had to be rescued, when he
:03:27. > :03:29.moved into his house in October. It has been flooded 80 times since
:03:30. > :03:39.Christmas, but it has not come into the houses. It has found a way in
:03:40. > :03:44.now. `` a few times. To give you some idea of just how
:03:45. > :03:48.bad the river is, take a look behind me. That area there were a few
:03:49. > :03:54.things are sticking out of the water is a caravan park. From the boat, it
:03:55. > :04:02.is easy to see the extent of the flooding all around. It is coming up
:04:03. > :04:07.so quickly. It is getting people to a safe position as quickly as
:04:08. > :04:12.possible. It is currently 5.4 metres above its normal level. As you can
:04:13. > :04:19.see, it does have some weight to go to match the level in 2007. `` some
:04:20. > :04:23.way. There is some good news, for the majority here the flood defences
:04:24. > :04:27.are working and holding back the river. As someone else was rescued,
:04:28. > :04:32.the worry is that with more rain forecast, they may not have seen the
:04:33. > :04:35.worst of it yet here. Back now to Worcester and our
:04:36. > :04:42.reporter, Liz Copper. Liz, what's the latest on the situation there?
:04:43. > :04:51.River levels are still very high. They are expected to rise again
:04:52. > :04:54.during the course of tomorrow. There are still some road closures and
:04:55. > :04:58.diversions here in the city centre and there are also expected to
:04:59. > :05:04.remain tomorrow. Business leaders are keen to point out that this is a
:05:05. > :05:08.city very much still open for business and any disruption will be
:05:09. > :05:10.kept to an absolute minimum. The Environment Agency, who as you
:05:11. > :05:14.expect will be monitoring things right through the night, and they
:05:15. > :05:22.are confident that flood defences will hold. We are confident that the
:05:23. > :05:27.flood defences will hold and work. Were not expecting 2007 levels. But
:05:28. > :05:30.they are manageable at the moment. `` we are not. It's not just
:05:31. > :05:38.Worcestershire, what other parts of our region have been affected?
:05:39. > :05:44.Tonight, across the region there are 44 flood warnings and 24 flood
:05:45. > :05:47.alerts. In Herefordshire, the River Wye proves quite a spectacle with
:05:48. > :05:52.some coming to watch the racing floodwaters. It was very dangerous.
:05:53. > :06:00.Six motorists had to be rescued by firefighters. Some villagers in
:06:01. > :06:04.Herefordshire 's `` some villages in Herefordshire are only passable in a
:06:05. > :06:10.4x4. In Shrewsbury, drivers who left their cars near a bridge were caught
:06:11. > :06:13.out by the raving `` the raising speed of the River Severn. The
:06:14. > :06:18.Environment Agency `` near Brent agency say that levels are
:06:19. > :06:20.manageable. `` the Environment Agency.
:06:21. > :06:24.And for the all latest information on the floods and how they're
:06:25. > :06:27.affecting the roads where you live, be sure to listen to your local
:06:28. > :06:30.radio station for regular updates. That's all from me. We'll be back at
:06:31. > :06:33.Breakfast from 6am tomorrow morning. The weather's next.
:06:34. > :06:41.Well. It's an eventful week weather`wise to say the least.
:06:42. > :06:44.Adding to our worries. We have not just got rain, but the drop in
:06:45. > :06:48.overall temperatures is going to mean a risk of ice, frost and snow
:06:49. > :06:51.for which there are yellow warnings. Even more serious than yellow though
:06:52. > :06:55.is the amber warning for strong winds in the West and Southwest of
:06:56. > :06:58.the region for Wednesday. Those will also be accompanied by heavy rain.
:06:59. > :07:01.At the moment out there though we have largely dry conditions and
:07:02. > :07:04.clear skies with a touch of frost and ice starting to develop as
:07:05. > :07:13.temperatures plunge just into negative numbers for rural spots. So
:07:14. > :07:16.that will continue for a time tomorrow morning with squally winds
:07:17. > :07:18.and producing between ten and 20mm of rain followed by a drier,
:07:19. > :07:25.brighter afternoon but still blustery and a top temperature of
:07:26. > :07:30.seven Celsius. A more detailed look at the national picture is next.
:07:31. > :07:42.I will leave you Good evening. You have my permission
:07:43. > :07:47.to complain about too many repeats with the British weather at the
:07:48. > :07:52.moment because yet again it looks as though our winter weather is set to
:07:53. > :07:56.continue with a repeat of last week. Sunny spells and scattered showers
:07:57. > :08:03.today and this is the next area of low pressure pushing in from the
:08:04. > :08:07.west. It influences our weather for the rest of the week. More rain to
:08:08. > :08:15.come and gales and severe gales to come. Ice is a possible risk. That
:08:16. > :08:24.means a cumulative total perhaps or 40-70 millimetres and that is an
:08:25. > :08:27.extra two to three inches. It will exacerbate the flooding we have
:08:28. > :08:33.already got across England at the moment. The cloud, wind and rain is
:08:34. > :08:40.already pushing in from the west. There will be a widespread frost.
:08:41. > :08:44.Ice could be a problem first thing in Northern Ireland. Snow in the
:08:45. > :08:48.hills and maybe in the North East of Scotland we could see snow at lower
:08:49. > :08:56.levels. Rain through northern England and Wales and Somerset. Some
:08:57. > :09:01.of that rain could be quite intense coupled with squally, gusty winds on
:09:02. > :09:05.exposed coasts. In the east it starts off relatively dry, but it
:09:06. > :09:12.will not be long before the wind and the rain spreads further east. Up
:09:13. > :09:16.into the North the snow showers continue on the hills, but by the
:09:17. > :09:23.end of the afternoon we could see wet snow even at lower levels. A
:09:24. > :09:28.cold day. There is a potential for some snow showers at lower levels
:09:29. > :09:32.across England and Wales on Tuesday night and into Wednesday. On
:09:33. > :09:39.Wednesday it is this area of low pressure which is the main factor in
:09:40. > :09:44.Wednesday's weather. More wet and windy weather. An early amber
:09:45. > :09:49.warning has already been issued from the South West. Severe gales are
:09:50. > :09:54.likely as we continue to see some very wet weather coming into central
:09:55. > :09:59.and southern areas. The strongest winds follow in behind those
:10:00. > :10:01.showers. In Scotland you are probably wondering what the