The UK weather misery continues, as the worst September storms in 30 years hit the country, with the Met office issuing 44 flood warnings indicating expected floods, and 60 less serious flood alerts across England and Wales.

A 27-year-old woman’s body was found by police shortly after 5pm yesterday on a sandbank in the River Clywedog, near Wrexham, North Wales, which was swollen yesterday following heavy rain. A 25-year-old local man, was found dead in the same river at around midnight.

Heavy rains since Sunday have caused severe flooding and resulted in swollen rivers, swamping rail and road networks by high water levels, causing irrevocable damage to several of the UK homes and businesses. The Met Office has announced that Yorkshire has been the worst-hit area with around 300 homes getting flooded as water moved down the river system.

The Met Office is specifically concerned about York and Selby areas, with the government deploying soldiers overnight to help with a sandbagging operation in the village of Cawood. A fire crew from Lincolnshire was brought in with high-volume pumping equipment.

In York, the flow of the River Ouse passed this morning peaked around 16ft (5m) higher than the summer average. A number of people have been rescued from floodwater, and volunteers had to be transported by boat to a residential home to administer medication to elderly residents.

The Met Office announced that the A1(M) remains closed northbound near Catterick between junction 49 and the A66 at Scotch Corner, and is likely to remain closed until noon. The town of Tadcaster, in North Yorkshire, remains split in two after a bridge was closed on Wednesday owing to flooding.

Residents of a block of townhouses in Newburn, Newcastle, spent a second shelter-less night after floodwater scooped out the ground beneath the building, which remains cordoned off amid safety concerns, reported the Met Office.

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