A view of children’s playground equipment submerged in flood waters surrounding Tewkesbury Monastery, where wet weather clocks are expected in the coming days in Tewkesbury, England, on Wednesday, 23 December 2020. (Ben Birchall / PA via AP)
TO Newsroom
UPDATED 11:10 AM PT – Sunday, December 27, 2020
Hundreds of Bedfordshire residents have evacuated their homes following massive floods caused by “Storm Bella”.
According to reports this weekend, river levels are “extremely high”, with warnings of flooding in the region along the “Great River Ouse”, which is about 65 miles north of London.
Residents woke up to find parks, roads and, in some cases, their homes – sunk by the heavy rainfall of “Storm Bella”. The floods were five meters deep in some places.
Earlier today @bedsFire they were out to help Harrold residents evacuate their homes because of the flooding. For the latest information on Bedfordshire floods, check; https://t.co/D4abd1tHlo pic.twitter.com/dOV9cZRn0g
– Fire and rescue beds (@BedsFire) December 25, 2020
“I don’t think I’ve seen him for over 20 years, I’d say,” said a local resident. “It’s amazingly fast, too, so you wouldn’t want to come in, I don’t think so.”
Boat fire crews spent Christmas day rescuing residents. They rescued dozens of people from houses, businesses and blocked cars. Emergency accommodation was provided for about 500 people, some of whom even showed signs of hypothermia.
“It wasn’t exactly the best year,” said another resident. “And it’s just another thing to add to 2020 of things that aren’t good.”
The UK environmental agency has warned that “floods are imminent” as “Storm Bella” is expected to continue to hit the UK over the weekend.
Meanwhile, the region is also under restrictions on the “Level Four” coronavirus, which prohibits households from interfering with each other. However, authorities said the flood warnings nullify the current coronavirus restrictions. Officials also mentioned that people are allowed to go to other households to stay safe.
Residents are strongly encouraged to turn off water, gas and electricity before evacuation to prevent further problems.