Flooding in Wales: Travel warning after torrential rain over weekend causes disruption
People are being urged to plan ahead for their weekend journeys as flooding causes travel disruption across Wales.
Torrential rain over the weekend has led to widespread road closures and disruption to public transport.
There is a flood warning in place for the River Wye at Monmouth, and 19 flood alerts across Wales, including the Upper Severn in Powys, River Dee and River Usk.
Heavy rain on Saturday caused Malpas Road in Newport to flood
Credit: Nadine Mahoney
It comes after multiple homes were evacuated when a fortnight's worth of rain fell in just 24 hours earlier this week, causing widespread flash floods.
With water levels high and the ground already saturated, Natural Resources Wales (NRW) says surface water flooding is likely to cause further disruption in the coming days, particularly in the south and south east Wales.
NRW says it does not provide official flood warnings for surface water flooding, as the sporadic and intense nature of rainfall makes it "very difficult to accurately predict" when it will occur.
It is therefore encouraging people to check their risk of surface water flooding via a postcode checker on its website and to make preparations if necessary.
Surface water flooding is when rainwater does not drain away through the normal drainage systems or soak into the ground.
In the most serious cases, Natural Resources Wales issues a "severe flood warning", but none have been published for this weekend.
Kelly McLauchlan, Duty Tactical Manager at Natural Resources Wales said: “With rivers already swollen and with the ground so wet, we expect to see many flood alerts and warnings issued if rivers reach trigger levels again.
“As NRW does not provide warnings for surface water flooding, we urge people to check if they live in an area at risk of surface water and river flooding on our website with our simple postcode checker.
“We also want to remind people not to drive or walk through flood waters - you don’t know what lies beneath. Keep an eye on weather forecasts and visit our website for latest information on the flood warnings. You can find practical advice on flooding on our website too.”