Heavy rain causes flash flooding with more to come

A number of roads have been closed or partially closed by flooding

Heavy rain has caused flash floods and has led to warnings of rising river levels in the West Midlands.

Flood water has been reported on streets in Birmingham causing delays and road closures.

National Highways closed two lanes of the M5 near Halesowen on Tuesday evening after flooding on the motorway, but all lanes had reopened by Wednesday morning.

The Environment Agency has issued several flood alerts in across the wider region. A yellow warning for rain has been issued for Friday with one forecaster saying it could be the wettest day so far this autumn.

A flood warning was issued for the Illey Brook in Halesowen but it has since been downgraded.

The Met Office has warned of further "heavy and prolonged rain" across the West Midlands on Friday and Saturday, which it said could lead to flooding and disruption.

Surface water flooding was also reported in the Bartley Green area of Birmingham

Majid Mahmood, The Birmingham city councillor responsible for transport, urged people not to drive or walk through flooded areas, where he said "the water can be far deeper and faster moving than it appears".

He said the authority was working to manage flooding and clear blocked drains and suggested people contact their local councillor to tell them about flooding issues.

Bruce Lines, a city councillor for the Bartley Green area, said the flooding had caused "gridlock" there four or five times in the past 12 months.

He said the area had seen an "exceptional amount of rain" in the past 24 hours and ground water had risen, with a particular problem around Adams Hill.

"The drainage system here doesn't appear to be sufficient and we need to get this resolved," he said.

A flooded road in Bartley Green

Another Bartley Green councillor, Kerry Brewer, said: "Persistent flooding near Bartley Green School continues to cause major traffic disruption during periods of heavy rain."

She said the council's highways team had told her gullies in the area were unable to cope and she was looking for a "long-term solution to prevent future disruption".

Elsewhere in Birmingham, flooding has caused delays and road closures.

The RAC reported the A456 Hagley Road West was partially blocked, heading east, between the A4123 Wolverhampton Road and Beechwood Road.

It said flooding had also closed the exit slip road to the M6 northbound at Hilton Park Services.

Transport for West Midlands reported delays to a number of bus services around the Walsall Road and Aldridge Road areas, and said the underpass on the A34 at Perry Barr had closed due to clean-up work continuing.