Part of the River Thames freezes for first time in several years
Sub-zero temperatures saw water turn to ice along a section of the Thames in Teddington, in the south west of England’s capital city.
An image taken by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) in Teddington showed seagulls chilling on the frozen surface of the river.
In a tweet, the RNLI said they might’ve needed to use a smaller lifeboat as an ‘icebraker’ to get out onto the water because it’s “not often the Thames freezes over in Teddington”.
A spokesperson said “It’s quite spectacular. I’ve lived here for 13-years and I’ve not seen this part of the river freeze like this.”
The Thames has completely frozen over in the past, the last time being in January 1963 – the coldest winter for more than 200 years that brought blizzards, snow drifts and temperatures of -20C.
Extremely cold weather this week saw temperatures in London drop to -2C, meanwhile the UK experienced the coldest February night for 25 years – with temperatures of -23C recorded at Braemar weather station in Scotland.
Between 1309 and 1814, the Thames froze at least 23 times and on five occasions the ice was strong enough to hold a fair on the river.
The ice was several feet thick and could support shops, pubs, fairground rides, thousands of people – and even elephants could walk across it!
The first ‘frost fair’ as they were known was recorded in 1608 when the river iced up for six weeks. The last fair took place over 200 years later in 1814.
The frost fairs took place during a period of time known as the Little Ice Age, roughly between 1350-1850 which saw an increase in cold winters in parts of Europe.
Courtesy of BBC Newsround
Red alert flood warning for River Severn issued, UK
River levels in Gloucestershire are rising after heavy rainfall – with more wet weather to come.
The Environment Agency has issued a Flood Warning and Flood Alerts for parts of the Severn and Wye as tidal surges and strong winds combine with rain to cause flooding.
There were reports this afternoon of flooding on the A40 at Highnham, around Two Mile Lane.
This evening, a red Flood Warning was issued for the River Severn at Severn Ham, Tewkesbury.
A Flood Warning has also been issued for the River Wye from Hereford to Ross-on-Wye.
Incident response staff have been deployed along the River Severn in Gloucestershire to check defences as people are urged to avoid using low lying footpaths near watercourses.
On the Severn Estuary, from Gloucester down to Sharpness, the tidal surge with high spring tides and strong winds is expected to overtop sea defences.
Just across the Herefordshire border in Ross-on-Wye, heavy rainfall has seen river levels on Wye rise and flooding of roads and farmland is expected to continue.
The Met Office has put severe weather warnings on parts of the South West and Wales, although none of the warning zones cover Gloucestershire at present.
Courtesy of gloucestershirelive.co.uk
Typhoon Vicky leaves 9 dead in Visayas and Mindanao, Philippines
TROPICAL Depression “Vicky” left nine people dead and affected thousands in the Visayas and Mindanao as it slowly moved away from the country.
Mark Timbal, deputy spokesman for the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), confirmed on Sunday that three persons died during the storm’s rage in Mahaplag, Leyte as reported by local authorities.
Agusan del Sur Gov. Santiago Cane, meanwhile, reported three fatalities and one missing from the town of San Francisco with some areas still flooded.
Cane said the local government units of Agusan del Sur have been preparing for natural calamities, especially typhoons and other types of weather disturbances.
But the typhoon’s heavy rainfall reached the red warning, causing rivers to overflow.
Cane identified one of the fatalities as an employee of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. The victim tried to cross the highway with his wife on a motorcycle, but floodwaters dragged them to their death.
The two other victims crossed rivers separately, with one of them drunk at the time. The two were swept away by the strong waves.
Surigao del Sur Gov. Alexander Pimentel, meanwhile, said three people also died in his province.
In its situational report, the NDRRMC said it monitored a total of 26 incidents in Caraga Region during Vicky’s onslaught, with 25 incidents of flooding and one landslide recorded.
The NDRRMC said 1,590 families or 6,702 persons across the regions of Davao and Caraga were affected by the weather disturbance.
Damage to infrastructure has reached P105.4 million in Caraga alone. Agricultural damage is still being assessed, the NDRRMC said.
“Our operations are continuous and our local government units have been on-alert even before [the tropical depression] entered. Everyone coordinated through the regional disaster councils in the Visayas and Mindanao,” Timbal said in a separate interview over TeleRadyo.
Courtesy of manilatimes.net
More than 30 flood alerts issued as Storm Aiden hammers Wales
Severe flooding has already been seen and there’s worse to come.
More than 30 flood alerts are in place across Wales today (October 31) as Storm Aiden continues to bring torrential rain and wind to the UK.
Named by the Met Eireann, the storm was predicted to unleash around 20-30mm of rain on Saturday, with 40-60mm across higher ground and as much as 80mm in the wettest places.
Already the storm has caused severe flooding in North Wales, after the River Conwy burst its banks on Friday.
Travel disruption was reported in areas of Gwynedd and Conwy after a number of roads were closed or badly flooded, including the A498 in Beddgelert and the A4086 in both directions from Pont Pen-y-benglog to Llanberis.
Despite a weather warning for rain ending at 2pm on Saturday, another is due to come into force in Wales on Sunday as the remanants of ex-Hurricane Zeta sweeps the UK.
The warning is due to begin at 6pm on Sunday and last into the early hours of Monday.
As the weekend continues, the Met Office is warning that homes and businesses could become flooded, causing damage to some buildings.
Fast flowing or deep floodwater is is also possible, “causing a danger to life”, they said.
People should prepare for delays or cancellations to train and bus services. Spray and flooding could lead to difficult driving conditions and some road closures.
In the meantime, a yellow weather warning for strong winds continues on Saturday.
According to the Met Office: “A belt of very strong and possibly squally southerly winds will develop on Saturday morning with gusts of 60-65 mph, perhaps 70 mph on exposed coasts and hills.”
The strong winds are likely to cause leaves to fall from trees, increasing drainage problems and exacerbating flooding in some areas.
As of Saturday afternoon, 34 flood alerts were in place across Wales.
According to the forecast from Natural Resources Wales, local flooding from rivers and surface water is probable across Wales and the Upper River Severn on Saturday.
Courtesy of walesonline.co.uk
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