Major incident declared in Somerset as flood disruption continues

Summary

Somerset Council declared a major incident after heavy rain and flooding on Sunday night, into Monday.
More than 100 people were evacuated as a precautionary measure in the early hours
Some Chard residents have had their homes flooded, with one saying it is the "worst" they have seen in 20 years.
Due to the extreme weather, several schools in Somerset are fully or partially closed.
Rising water levels in the Avon are expected to cause more flooding.

Live Reporting

Village 'reeling' from floodspublished at 13:40 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
BBC reporter Dan Ayers is currently in South Petherton speaking to residents.
Quote Message
South Petherton is still reeling from floods last night. I just spoke to a couple who were cleaning the road of debris, as they wanted to do their bit. The topic of conversation in the village is all about Burnworthy House care home that was flooded overnight. Water is still flowing in the streams and on the street but it’s much better than this morning.
Yellow rain warning to continue into Tuesdaypublished at 13:36 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
A yellow warning for rain has been put in place for most of the West.
The caution for Somerset, Bath, Bristol and Wiltshire is expected to continue into Tuesday morning.
The strong winds will drive in a succession of showers, some of them heavy, through the day and into tonight, before slowly easing during Tuesday morning, the Met Office has said.
It added the incoming rain is likely to "produce or sustain some flooding impacts, primarily affecting road travel".
"Additional hazards could include further lightning strikes, and hail making road conditions dangerous," it said.
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Floodwater was 'coming in waves'published at 13:21 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
Image source, Elaine Merrick-Reed
Image caption,
Flood water goes over the top of a flood barrier
Chard resident Elaine Merrick-Reed took photos of the floodwater as it started to build outside her house.
"I looked out and it was coming in waves," she said.
Ms Merrick-Reed added: "It came over the barrier and flooded everywhere. It was awful."
Image source, Elaine Merrick-Reed
Image caption,
Rain water runs down the street outside Elaine Merrick-Reed's home
Image source, Elaine Merrick-Reed
Image caption,
Elaine Merrick-Reed says the flood water damaged her house
'The community spirit has been amazing'published at 13:12 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
Dan Ayers
BBC News, Somerset
Image caption,
Ben Perham said his community came together in the aftermath
Despite the many homes that have been severely damaged by floods, everybody has been helping each other out, a man in Ilminster has said.
When Ben Perham's street started to flood he said he "didn't have a plan" but knew he needed to move everything from the floor.
"The community spirit has been absolutely amazing. Everyone has been out on the street checking on each other, trying to direct traffic and unplug drains," he said.
"We've even had neighbours say we've booked you a Travelodge room...It's there if you need it.
"The council needs to be on top of the drains. We pay our tax, it needs to be done."
Image caption,
Mr Perham said: "The council needs to be on top of the drains"
Image caption,
Many homes in Ilminster were flooded
A303 closed againpublished at 12:58 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
National Highways South West has confirmed the A303 in Wiltshire has closed again in the past 10 minutes.
It is closed eastbound between the B3092 and the B3095 near Mere due to flooding.
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Floodwater 'flew in through the back door'published at 12:50 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
Dan Ayers
BBC News, Somerset
Image caption,
Ilminster resident Ben Perham said the flood is the worst he has "ever seen"
A resident in Ilminster said the floods are the worst he has ever seen.
Ben Perham said the water rose from the pavement to his house within 20 minutes.
"The second it breached the bags it just flew in through the backdoor," he said.
Image caption,
Mr Perham said he is now trying to "salvage" what he can from his home
"It just kept on rising.This was definitely the worst.
"We've been here for 12 years and I've never seen floods like that.
"We came back at around 09:30 [GMT]. We're clearing up, hoping for the best with humidifiers. We're looking for whatever is salvageable."
In pictures: Heap of earth blocks roadpublished at 12:41 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
Locals worked to clear mud and rocks from a road in the village of Barrington, Somerset, following a landslip.
Image caption,
The road was impassable after a landslip
Image caption,
A tractor is brought in to clear the way
Image caption,
Roots and branches of trees can be seen in the heap of earth
Water 'came over the flood barrier'published at 12:25 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
Image caption,
Ms Merrick-Reed has lived in the house for 20 years
Elaine Merrick-Reed, who lives in Chard, watched as water rushed into her property over the flood barrier on her driveway.
"It came over the barrier and flooded everywhere, the front and back porch, it was awful," said Ms Merrick-Reed.
She added: "This is the worst it's been and I have been here 20 years. It was really scary, you feel helpless."
Image caption,
Elaine Merrick-Reed said the flood barrier across her driveway was breached
Village roads submergedpublished at 12:15 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
Roads in the village of Puckington near Taunton have been swamped with muddy water.
Image caption,
Floodwater submerges a road next to a house in Puckington
Image caption,
A drain in a woodland in the village is put to good use
Chard town hall used as refuge centrepublished at 11:59 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
Image caption,
Chard councillor Jason Baker says the rain took people by surprise
The Guildhall, Chard's town hall, opened last night as a refuge centre, said Jason Baker, councillor for Chard South.
"There was a warm place for people to go," he said. "We had a couple of people here who we managed to relocate to someone's home where they could be more comfortable."
Mr Baker added: "We were overwhelmed with people dropping blankets in and offering any help they could give. It was really nice to see the community pulling together."
Drivers warned of high winds as roads reopenpublished at 11:48 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
Drivers have been reminded to be cautious of strong winds as some roads across the west reopen.
- The A303 is now fully open in both directions between the B3092 and the B3095 near Mere in Wiltshire, but the stretch between Upottery and Horton Cross remains closed due to flooding.
- National Highways said its contractors are working to clear the water, but this is expected to take some time.
- The A36 in Wiltshire, which was closed between between Chapmanslade and Beckington, is now fully open.
- Meanwhile in Somerset, the A303, which had been closed between Horton Cross and Crewkerne, has reopened eastbound and the High Street in Chard has reopened.
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'A difficult night for Somerset residents'published at 11:39 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
"All sorts of villages" across the county have been affected by flooding, says council leader Bill Revans. The police, fire service, Environment Agency and council are working together to support residents, he said.
Media caption,
Somerset Council has declared a major incident after flooding in parts of the county.
'Floating boxes' in pet storepublished at 11:27 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
Image caption,
Floodwater has caused damage to BD Garden & Pet Supplies
Brian Drury, owner of BD Garden & Pet Supplies in Ilminster, says the floodwater in his store was 2ft (60cm) deep.
"I've been here 40 years and I've never seen anything like it," he said.
"It had gone straight through the back, there's mud and all out there now. The boxes were floating out there in it."
'Leaves, silt, stones'published at 11:17 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
Ross Pollard
Somerset Reporter, BBC West
BBC reporter Ross Pollard is at the town hall in Chard.
He said: "In the centre of Chard this morning the water has gone but it's left behind leaves, silt, stones and other bits of debris to be cleared up."
He added: "Outside the Guildhall, where water was flowing yesterday, there's now sodden sandbags."
Image caption,
BBC reporter Ross Pollard is in Chard
'Locals out with saws and diggers'published at 11:07 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
Matt Faulkner
BBC Radio Somerset's Matt Faulkner is in the village of Barrington.
He said: "It’s been a busy start to the day for some locals in Barrington.
"They were out with saws and cutting machinery and diggers to remove the landslip that was stopping people getting out of the village towards Shepton Beauchamp. They’ve now managed to clear that."
Image caption,
BBC Radio Somerset's Matt Faulkner in Barrington
Street turned into a riverpublished at 10:55 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
Media caption,
Resident films street with water flowing 'like a river' after heavy rain
Kiralee Cooper, who lives in Chard, said her street looked like a river on Sunday.
“I haven’t seen it this bad and I’ve lived here for nearly 30 years," she said.
"The whole of Chard was flooded yesterday.”
“The rain was coming down really bad for a good couple of hours with thunder and lightning," she said.
“We went out to check what the roads look like – it usually floods slightly – but this was huge amounts of water just flowing down the road."
School closurespublished at 10:40 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
Due to the extreme weather, several schools in Somerset are fully or partially closed.
Fully closed
- Hill View School
- Orchard Grove Primary School
- Wadham CofE VC Community School
- Countess Gytha Primary School
- Hinton St George CofE School
- Herne View CofE Primary School
- South Petherton CofE Infants School
- South Petherton Junior School
- Shepton Beauchamp Church School
- St Mary and St Peter's Church School
- Hambridge Community Primary School
- Neroche Primary School
Partially closed
- Chilthorne Domer Church School
- Martock CofE Primary School
- East Coker Community Primary School
Car crushed in Ilminsterpublished at 10:33 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
Another image of a collapsed wall in Ilminster shows how rubble and mud were strewn across a street, crushing a car.
Image caption,
A car windscreen is smashed and the body dented after a wall collapsed
'Water was waist deep'published at 10:18 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
Rachel Andrews
BBC Radio Somerset's Rachel Andrews is in Ilminster.
"At the moment the main road behind me is passable," she said.
"That wasn't the case last night. Police and the fire service had to close it because the water was waist deep in some places.
"Cars were getting stuck and people had to be rescued. Pretty much all the flood waters have subsided in this part of Ilminster. The flood water has left behind a lot of mud and other debris. The weather is also getting worse again."
'Water in the shop'published at 10:13 Greenwich Mean Time 27 January
The Co-op in South Petherton has suffered flood damage, says shop manager Stuart Saunders.
"It's probably a two to three day clean up job," he said.
"We’ve still got water in the back area of the shop. It's not the first time. It happened on 2 December 2023 as well. That time, it took around three months to get back to normal.
"We’ll get back up and running for the community as soon as possible."
Image source, Adam Dance
Image caption,
The road in front of the Co-Op in South Petherton flooded on Sunday