Cleveland Pools: UK's oldest lido closed by floods after revamp

Cleveland Pools will remain closed until the water subsides and clean up operations can begin

The UK's oldest lido, which recently underwent a £9.3m restoration, has been engulfed by floodwater.

Cleveland Pools in Somerset will remain closed while teams assess the situation and work towards an opening date.

Locations across Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Somerset were badly hit by heavy downpours during Storm Henk.

Cleveland Pools Trust apologised and said the site was "set up above anticipated flood levels" during the renovation.

Paul Simons, chair of the trust, said: "Once the river level has dropped the pools will be pumped out, jet washed down, re-filled and then the treatment circulation will recommence.

"This should take a number of days, not weeks."

Organisers said swimmers will be credited for any sessions they lose while the pools are closed.

Ashley Road in Salisbury has been closed

In Salisbury, river levels have continued to rise forcing some residents on Ashley Road to evacuate their homes after the River Avon burst its banks.

On Saturday, Wiltshire councillor Paul Sample said the local flood warden and fire brigade had been called to the scene.

"The water level is very high just behind The George & Dragon and burst the bank on the coach station park near to the toilet block," he said.

On Sunday, Mr Sample said the situation further deteriorated overnight.

"Six houses in Ashley Road have now been flooded," he said.

"Salisbury City Council staff made arrangements for the SCC Depot to be opened up and a supply of sandbags was released."

The area is next to the Salisbury River Park Project, a channel of the River Avon next to Salisbury's Central Car Park which had been designed to mitigate flood risks.

The area was hit by floods after the River Avon burst its banks

Elsewhere in Wiltshire, Marlborough fire station also had to close and relocate to a temporary base after it was flooded.

On social media the Dorset and Wiltshire Fire Service said crews "remain fully operational".

"Whilst dealing with incidents we had the added complication of multiple firefighters trying to salvage and protect our fire station," it posted.

"Due to the damage sustained we have temporarily relocated but remain available."

Parts of Somerset such as as Burrow Mump have also been hit badly by floods

Flood levels in parts of Gloucestershire such as Woolridge Hill are yet to recede

A total of 20 flood warnings were in place for Gloucestershire on Sunday, as well as 28 for Wiltshire and 13 for Somerset.

Ian Withers from the Environment Agency said the high water levels will take a while to recede.

"There's extreme levels of water," he said.

"So even though we have some dry weather it is going to take a while for the peaks in the rivers to move down to the sea to take the pressure off communities like those we've seen in recent days," he said.