Summary

  • Police searching for a missing man find a body in the River Kent near Kendal, in Cumbria

  • Met Office confirms record rainfall fell on Cumbria in 24 hours - 341.4mm

  • As many as 5,000 homes in Northern England and southern Scotland flooded

  • Power has been lost to 42,000 properties in the Lancaster area and more than 1,400 in Cumbria are also without power

  • Schools closed and hospital services cancelled. Road and rail travel also disrupted

  • David Cameron has visited the flood-hit region and has chaired an emergency Cobra meeting

  1. Insurance advice for flood victimspublished at 12:53

    Insurers have outlined advice for those affected by floods - now and in the future, while compensation is also available to those whose train journeys were affected and to some of those whose power has been cut.

  2. PM on flood defencespublished at 12:49

    David Cameron

    David Cameron has told a press conference that "record sums" are being invested in flood defences, "but the events of the last 24, 48 hours demonstrate that sometimes there are levels of rainfall, levels of flooding that it's extremely hard to protect against." 

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  3. At the scene - Video from Carlislepublished at 12:38

    Media caption,

    Storm Desmond: Flooding crisis not over in Carlisle

    The BBC's Danny Savage reports from Carlisle's Warwick Road area, where the perimeter of the flood zone has shrunk, but 36 hours on, people are still being rescued.

  4. How do you stop flooding?published at 12:36

    There has been much talk of flood defences - and their efficacy - but just how do you go about stopping such a deluge? This piece can help answer that question.

    It gives you the run-down on temporary measures to deal with emergencies, as well as longer term steps such as dredging and sustainable building methods.

    Flood defences
  5. Flood forecast for the coming dayspublished at 12:31

    Maps showing areas at risk of flooding
  6. Cumbria Tourism appeals for fundingpublished at 12:30

    Ian Stephens, managing director of Cumbria Tourism, has appealed to the government to provide money to help the industry recover as quickly as possible.

    "Cumbria Tourism has a great deal of experience in dealing with such crises and played a key role in co-ordinating business recovery after the 2005, 2009 Cumbria floods and the foot-and-mouth outbreak in 2001," he said.

    The organisation has set up a helpline - 01539 822222 during normal office hours - to provide visitors and businesses with up-to-date information.

  7. Warnings for motoristspublished at 12:30 Greenwich Mean Time 7 December 2015

    Road recovery service tweets...

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  8. Latest from the lobbypublished at 12:22

    James Landale
    Deputy political editor

    David Cameron chaired the government's emergency committee for just under an hour this morning. Ministers were briefed down the line by chief constables from the affected areas. The prime minister's official spokesman said the discussion focused on three phases. The first looked at the current situation on the ground, assessing priorities, including transport issues and restoring power. 

    The second focused "on what the government can do to help communities affected as they get back on their feet" including support for businesses and local authorities. 

    The third was an agreement "that the government should now look again at the plans that we have in place and the flood defences that already exist, and whether there needs to be adjustment made to those based on the fact that we have seen unprecedented amounts of rainfall in some areas, going above the flood defences that had been planned for on the basis of the levels of water that there were in 2005".

  9. 8,600 homes protected - environment secretarypublished at 12:10

    Environment Secretary Liz Truss has published a statement on the floods. , external

    In it, she says flood defences - which have been criticised in some quarters - "protected 8,600 homes across the north of England and, in thousands of other instances, provided vital time for homes and businesses to be evacuated as well as reducing the impact".

    Ms Truss says she's heading to Cumbria along with the prime minister later.

  10. Extra patrols to prevent lootingpublished at 12:09

    Cumbria Police have released a statement, external concerning looting in flood-hit areas. 

    "There has been some speculation to suggest that police are dealing with looting incidents in the county, particularly in Carlisle.

    "After the 2005 floods there were several looting reports and as a result, following the 2009 floods the patrols were stepped up in preparation."As a precaution, extra patrols for this purpose have again been deployed in the Carlisle area."However, at this time we have had no reports of looting."  

  11. Bishops urge help for vulnerablepublished at 12:01

    Anglican bishops in Lancashire have said their "thoughts and prayers" are with those affected by flooding in the region.

    In a joint statement, the Rt Rev Julian Henderson, Bishop of Blackburn, the Rt Rev Geoff Pearson, Bishop of Lancaster, and the Rt Rev Philip North, Bishop of Burnley also thanked the emergency services for their work.

    Quote Message

    However, we remain concerned especially for elderly and vulnerable people and those struggling to find the help they need. We hope that people can go on pulling together in this time of crisis and will continue to do all we can to offer support."

  12. Cost vs benefit in flood defencepublished at 11:52

    Dr Jillian Labadz, a flood expert at Nottingham Trent University, says it's not surprising flood defences were overtopped, given Storm Desmond looks to have brought a record amount of rainfall for a single day.

    Quote Message

    Any flood risk management scheme is designed for a balance of costs and benefits - we decide how much society is prepared to invest in order to prevent future damages, and then build the scheme accordingly."

    She said it was important to make communities more resilient to flooding. 

    Quote Message

    Groups such as local and national Flood Forums should work in partnership with the authorities, to increase resilience by raising flood awareness, developing individual and community emergency response plans and helping residents to cope with the aftermath of flooding.”

  13. Climate change 'an existing reality' - Green leaderpublished at 11:51

    Green Party leader, Natalie Bennett has offered her sympathy to those hit by the floods, but has also made it clear she thinks there is a wider context to what's happening.

    Quote Message

    Any individual event is of course weather, not climate change, but we know that scientists say that climate change will mean more frequent and higher level occurrences of extreme weather. The extraordinary Storm Desmond is a reminder that climate change is not something that will affect the distant future in far-off places, but an already existing reality that is impacting on all of our lives."

    Ms Bennett added: "Storm Desmond also brings into serious question government plans to cut funding for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and its failure to commit to enhancing the spending for maintenance of flood defences, when this is so clearly needed."

  14. Reinforcements arrive to tackle floodingpublished at 11:50 Greenwich Mean Time 7 December 2015

    Environment Agency official tweets...

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  15. Flood level on par with 2005published at 11:49 Greenwich Mean Time 7 December 2015

    This plaque on Eden Bridge in the centre of Carlisle was installed after the floods 10 years ago. It looks like these floods at least equalled that level.  

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  16. At the scenepublished at 11:43

    Danny Savage, BBC north of England correspondent

    Rescue workers in CarlisleImage source, Getty Images

    It's getting better in Carlisle, but it's a long way from being over. The water in the Warwick Road area of the city is receding and the perimeter of the flood zone has shrunk. But 36 hours on, people are still being rescued. Lifeboat crews say these are mainly people who thought they would tough it out at home but have finally decided enough is enough. 

    Where the water has drained away residents are now assessing the damage. Soaking carpets are being pulled up and ruined belongings thrown away. And they know what's ahead. It will take months to dry out these homes and people here are well acquainted with the long, miserable experience.

  17. Seek EU help with flooding - Lib Dem leaderpublished at 11:29

    Norman Smith
    Assistant political editor

    The Liberal Democrats are calling on the government to seek emergency EU funding to help communities hit by the flooding. 

    The EU Solidarity Fund - which has a budget of up to £359 million a year - was set up to provide financial assistance to EU countries struck by major natural disasters. When the 2007 floods hit, the UK was granted £134 million from the fund. 

    Lib Dem leader Tim Farron said:

    Quote Message

    This funding could provide a lifeline for local authorities, helping them pay for clean-up costs and rebuilding vital infrastructure. It would be wrong to turn it down for political reasons."

  18. Pics: The clean-up in Cockermouthpublished at 11:27

    Men cleaning up flooded house in CockermouthImage source, AFP
    People clear up flooded shop in CockermouthImage source, AFP
    Man emptying water from his shop in CockermouthImage source, Reuters
  19. More flood prevention work needed - Labourpublished at 11:23

    Labour's shadow environment secretary Kerry McCarthy says more needs to be done to combat future flooding:

    Quote Message

    We've had serious flooding in various parts of the country over the last few years... I was told that Defra were just hoping that it would be better weather this winter. That is not an approach that is sustainable, that's not an approach that is fair on the people who live there. So I think we do need to get the experts in and see what more can be done."

  20. And another view from the airpublished at 11:20 Greenwich Mean Time 7 December 2015

    Our weather team tweets...

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