Image source, Getty Images

We're now wrapping up our coverage, after a day where large parts of England were hit by flooding. A yellow weather warning for rain remains in place in the south of England until the early hours of tomorrow morning.

Here is what happened today:

• Nottinghamshire County Council declared a major incident along the River Trent after Storm Henk caused widespread flooding in the region. The council says "well over a hundred properties" have now flooded in the county, with more expected overnight and tomorrow as the river continues to rise
• In the aftermath of the storm, an 87-year-old woman died after the car she was driving hit a fallen tree near Crays Pond in Oxfordshire, where several trees came down due to strong winds
• Across southern England, National Rail says heavy rainfall is likely to disrupt journeys on Southern, Gatwick Express and Thameslink networks, with Great Western Railway advising its passengers not to travel on several of its routes because of flooding
• In Gloucestershire, the town of Tewkesbury is surrounded by flood water with several roads closed and an evacuation rest centre set up
• Across England, there are 274 flood warnings in place and a further 327 flood alerts

Thank you for joining us. Today's page was written by Oliver Slow, Andre Rhoden-Paul, Tiffany Wertheimer and Malu Cursino. Our editors were Heather Sharp, Jemma Crew and Michael Sheils McNamee.

You can read the latest updates from across the UK here.

Image source, Derbyshire Constabulary

Flooding today has also affected livestock. Police in Derbyshire said while it was able to save a number of cows from a flooded field, some others had died.

Derbyshire Constabulary's Rural Crime Team said officers and the fire service were called to the incident in the village of Sawley, close to the M1.

An investigation into the incident is underway.

While in Leicestershire, members of the public managed to save a number of horses from a flooded field.

Alex Thorp
BBC News

A man who was stranded on the roof of a shed surrounded by flood water has been rescued.

Firefighters attended the scene near Clifton, Nottingham, at about 11:00 GMT before they took the man to safety.

This footage shows the impact of heavy rainfall caused by Storm Henk in Southampton, Hampshire.

Drivers on Millbrook Road West have been ploughing through flood water - which has risen throughout the day.

The city council has also published a list , externalof other main roads across the city that have been impacted by localised flooding.

Flooding due to heavy rainfall and strong winds has led to evacuation orders and travel disruption in England and Wales.

Here's what we know so far:

• Great Western Railway has advised its passengers not to travel as several of its routes have closed because of flooding and a person was hit by a train near Reading
• Heavy rainfall is likely to disrupt journeys on Southern, Gatwick Express and Thameslink networks
• Those hoping to travel between Havant and Portsmouth Harbour have been urged to avoid the route as southern services will be unable to run because of multiple flooding reports

• In Cornwall, trains between Liskeard and Looe have had to be cancelled because flooding between the two stations means all lines are blocked
• Tonight, extreme rainfall has led to the following services being cancelled in both directions: all Island line trains, Guildford to Farnham, Sailsbury to Southampton via Romsey, and Southampton to Portsmouth via Netley

As we've been reporting, widespread flooding has hit parts of England after Storm Henk, with hundreds of flood alerts and warnings in place across England and Wales.

The Met Office has said there could be power cuts and travel disruption, as a yellow warning for rain is in place across the south of England.

In parts of England, Thursday saw the aftermath of the storm as many homes had to be evacuated and transport halted.

Image source, EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

Image source, PA Media

Image source, Getty Images

Ben Rich
BBC Weather

There is little clear evidence linking the frequency of storms in the UK with climate change.

But a warmer world does mean more intense rainfall, because warmer air is able to hold more moisture. In fact it can hold 7% more moisture for every degree of warming. This means that, when those storms do occur, we can expect them to bring heavier rainfall and an increased risk of flooding.

The flooding we’ve seen in the UK this week fits with this pattern and evidence suggests there could be more to come in the future.

Research by the Met Office suggests that, by the year 2070, winter rainfall could be up to 25% more intense than it was back in 1990, with winters expected to become up to 30% wetter overall.

A pub landlord whose premises are under water has said the latest flood has been "an evil one".

Mario Thomas, 65, who has been the landlord of The Boat Inn in Jackfield, Shropshire, since March 2022, said it has been the third flood he has seen at the property in less than 12 months.

He said the pub is “prone to flooding” due to its proximity to the River Severn and a nearby brook.

"It certainly made me cry to see the devastation it's caused, it is unbelievable," Thomas told the PA news agency.

He said the water kept rising so fast "it took us by complete shock".

Image source, Mario Thomas

Image source, Mario Thomas

Image source, Mario Thomas

Ben Rich
BBC Weather presenter

2024 has got off to an exceptionally wet start.

Parts of eastern England recorded nearly all their average January rainfall in just the first few days. Many other spots have had well over half the rainfall they’d normally expect during the whole month.

And that follows the joint-eighth wettest December on record, according to provisional Met Office figures.

Those records go back to 1836.

This means river catchments are full and the ground is saturated - and saturated ground is not able to absorb any more moisture.

Imagine a sponge sopping wet with water. If you pour more water on to the sponge it won’t be absorbed and will instead just run straight off.

The effect is similar with saturated ground, leading to flooding.

Dan Martin
BBC News

About 350 properties in Leicestershire have been flooded during Storm Henk, the county council has said.

About 80 of those have been in the town of Loughborough, which has been badly affected.

In an update on Thursday afternoon, the authority said it had found temporary accommodation for people forced from their homes and set up rest centres for others.

More than 40 roads remain closed across the county.

Nottinghamshire Councillor Roger Upton has lived in Radcliffe since 1975, and this is the worst flooding he's ever seen.

"We have managed to evacuate some residents that live on the river bank of the Trent, some locally, but the majority to Gamston, where the borough council has agreed to a hotel behind a pub there, so that's good," he said.

"It is worrying. All the water in the River Trent, from Staffordshire, Derbyshire, the River Dove, the River Soar, all the rivers, it all comes through here eventually and it's that time lag.

"When the rain stops, it takes days for it to come through here."

Natalie Fahy, editor of the Nottingham Post tells the BBC the flood waters are "truly shocking" and residents are in desperate need of more assistance.

People are “suffering far more than I've ever seen before," she says.

In one town Fahy visited, locals were having to arrange their own water pumps to clear the flood water from their homes, while a man who owns a tractor was taking people from one side of town to the other.

"They’ve almost become a self-sustaining crisis-centre, if you like, because there’s no other help for them there."

"I think people are feeling a mixture of fear, defiance, anger... and the authorities are helpless at the scale of what’s happened this time around."

As we reported earlier, a Met Office yellow warning for rain , externalcovering the south of England is in place until 03:00 GMT on Friday.

The warning, which stretches from Cornwall to East Anglia, says there could be power cuts and travel disruption, as well as renewed flooding.

It says: "Another spell of rain falling onto saturated ground, may lead to further flooding and travel disruption."

The Met office says some communities may be cut off by flooded roads, homes and businesses could be flooded, while difficult driving conditions and train and bus cancellations are also possible.

The worst of the rain is currently in the south of England, where the “rain really has been coming down hard and fast”, says BBC Weather presenter Ben Rich.

He says Bournemouth has seen 10mm of rain fall within an hour, which is likely to cause travel disruption.

The BBC weather centre says the worst of the rain is due to move through this evening towards the east, across East Anglia, East Midlands and parts of Lincolnshire and the south-east.

National Rail said train services running across Gatwick Express, Southern and Thameslink networks may be cancelled or delayed as a result.

Great Western Rail, which connects London with south-west England and south Wales, has advised travellers against starting their journeys by rail due to the heavy rainfall forecast on already flooded ground.

Image source, Reuters

Tewkesbury, in Gloucestershire, is surrounded by flood water, with several roads closed and an evacuation rest centre set up.

A number of flood alerts have been issued for Tewkesbury, involving the River Avon and the River Severn.

Tewkesbury Borough Council has told people who need to evacuate to head to a rest centre set up at the nearby village of Walton Cardiff.

Several roads into the town are closed, according to Gloucestershire County Council, which has told residents to ring 999 and ask for the fire service if they need to be evacuated.

Andy Goodall's pub in Severn Stoke has suffered its third flood in 12 months.

Here he is "enjoying" a pint at one of the nearly-submerged outside tables at the Rose and Crown, as pumps continue their work to keep the inside as dry as possible.

Image source, Simon Woodley

The continued wet weather comes in the aftermath of Storm Henk, which hit the UK on Tuesday, bringing winds of up to 81mph (130mph) and heavy rain.

The storm caused disruption across much of the country, including to train services on Tuesday and throughout Wednesday morning.

On Tuesday, a man in his 50s died after a tree fell on the car he driving in Gloucestershire, while in Orpington, south-east London, a woman was taken to hospital after being struck by a falling tree.

One man told of the "nerve-wracking" moment a roof hatch on a London Eye pod began to blow off in the high winds, while he was 135 metres up in the air.

"One guy was saying his prayers - he was very nervous indeed," he said.

In Birmingham, Liam Stych was hailed a hero after jumping into floodwater to rescue a woman and her three-year-old daughter from a partially submerged car.

Henk was the eighth named storm in three months.

Image source, Ellen Walker / PA

Nottinghamshire County Council has declared a major incident due to flooding and risk of further flooding in the aftermath of Storm Henk.

The council has said peaks on the River Trent could come close to the highest on record from 2000.

It is advising residents living in flood risk areas to ensure they have preparations in place in case they are asked to evacuate.

The council said key tributaries that feed into the River Trent - including the River Derwent, the River Soar and the River Dove - had reached their peaks, so high water levels would now pass down the Trent.

Nottinghamshire County Council has confirmed 50-60 properties have been flooded in the county, with the village of Gunthorpe worst affected.

Image source, Nottinghamshire County Council

There are hundreds of flood alerts and warnings in place, as heavy rain continues to hit large sections of the UK.

In England, 231 flood warnings , external- where flooding is expected - are in place, and 299 flood alerts, meaning flooding is possible.

Central and southern England are the main areas affected, although warnings and alerts are also in place in the north and south-west.

Natural Resources Wales has two flood warnings, external in place - one near the River Wye at Monmouth, and another at the River Ritec in Tenby - and 13 flood alerts, mainly in the centre of the country.

Image source, PA Media

Good evening. You join us as hundreds of flood warnings are in place across England and Wales, with downpours hitting areas where the ground is already saturated in the wake of Storm Henk earlier in the week.

One local described flooding "like a river outside their front doors" in Nottinghamshire, where a major incident has been declared.

Parts of Worcester city centre are under water, while some residents have been moved out of their homes in Shrewsbury.

A Met Office warning, in force until 0300 GMT on Friday stretches from Cornwall to East Anglia.We'll be bringing up updates, images and footage from across the affected areas. Stay with us.