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Holiday park residents have been forced to evacuate their homes for the third time this year because of flooding.
Firefighters and police co-ordinated the evacuation of Billing Aquadrome leisure park in Northamptonshire on Tuesday night, West Northamptonshire Council said.
Images and videos shared on social media by residents show large areas of the site covered in floodwater as residents left their properties.
At an overnight rest centre inside a nearby leisure centre space was provided for 52 people and 22 dogs displaced during the flooding. Bedding along with hot food and drink was handed out.
It’s the third time the park has been evacuated this year, with similar flooding incidents in January and February. The low lying park is in the Nene Valley, near Northampton, and features lakes, rivers, locks and a marina.
The evacuation comes after parts of the UK saw more than the monthly average rainfall on Monday, with flash flooding damaging homes and disrupting travel.
A statement issued by West Northamptonshire Council said: “Northamptonshire Police, Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service, and teams of professionals from West Northamptonshire Council are co-ordinating their response at the site, where they are in support of the aquadrome’s management who are putting their evacuation plan in place.
“Northamptonshire Search and Rescue is working with the Fire Service and ready to respond if needed.”
Council teams are also carrying out welfare checks on any vulnerable residents, and a fire service joint command unit has been deployed at the 235-acre site.
Areas including Buckinghamshire, Northamptonshire and Warwickshire were among the worst hit on Monday, the Met Office said previously.
The Environment Agency had 26 flood warnings, meaning flooding is expected, including for the area around Billing Aquadrome, in England on Wednesday morning. The agency had also issed 54 flood alerts.
A yellow weather warning – indicating heavy rain could cause some disruption – has been issued for the whole day on Thursday for much of north east of England.
Between 20 and 30mm of rain could be seen widely, 50 to 70mm could fall in some locations and it is possible the Pennines and North York Moors could have between 80-100mm of rain.
