St Asaph: hundreds told to leave homes in flooded city
St Asaph residents were advised to leave their homes in the early hours
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Five hundred families have been told to leave their homes in St Asaph, where flooding could endanger lives after the River Elwy broke its banks.
The Environment Agency has issued two of the highest severe flood warnings on the Elwy. Water has already entered about 100 homes in St Asaph.
The are fears of further flooding after heavy rain in northern England and north Wales overnight.
In North Yorkshire, more than 50 houses in Pickering are under threat.
In flooded homes in St Asaph, water levels are said to be 2-3ft (60-90cm) in places.
Some residents have been rescued by lifeboats and fire crews after becoming trapped in their homes, and a pregnant woman was brought out the window of her property by British Red Cross volunteers.
The fire service has had 130 emergency calls in St Asaph on Tuesday, and said it could now only respond when there was a threat to life rather than to property.
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Weather information
The Environment Agency said the Elwy had reached 14ft 3in (4.35m) at St Asaph - more than 3ft (1m) deeper than its previous record, and compared with a typical depth range of 3-6ft (1-2m).
An emergency centre has been set up at a leisure centre in St Asaph for people evacuated from their homes.
The flooding risk is also affecting the north Wales villages of Abergele, Llanfairtalhaiarn, Llangernyw and Llansannan.
Inspector Mark Davies, from North Wales Police, said: "The Environment Agency tell us water levels are rising and getting worse.
"We haven't had any reports of people in severe difficulty but it has been distressing for people flooded in their own homes."
Residents have also been evacuated from their homes as the threat of flooding increases in Ruthin, 15 miles away, where Denbighshire County Council says up to 400 properties are potentially at risk.
Environment Agency officials are monitoring levels on the River Ouse in York
A spokesman for Prime Minister David Cameron said: "What we have seen in recent days is an exceptional amount of rain falling on often waterlogged ground and therefore floods happening in some cases very, very quickly.
"Actually, a lot has been done to improve flood defences since 2007 and we have prioritised flood protection and are investing considerable amounts over the next few years to ensure that homes are protected properly."
Swathes of the country suffered flooding in 2007, causing damage estimated at £3bn.
Luckily I'm in South Wales which was un-affected, high winds/rain already caused a tree to crush and kill a women who was sheltering under it, a man also died by driving into a swelled river.
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