Flood alert issued for River Tees as Storm Christoph hits North East

Storm Christoph has brought heavy rain across much of the UK and an alert has now been issued to warn of possible flooding.

River levels rose overnight into Wednesday morning (January) on the Lower River Tees and its estuarine tributaries as a result of heavy rainfall on Tuesday. As a result, flooding of riverside footpaths and low lying land and roads is expected to continue during Wednesday and Thursday.

A spokesman for the flooding information service said: “Further rainfall is forecast across the catchment today (Wednesday) with the possibility of heavier spells of rain this evening and consequently we expect river levels to remain high.

"We are closely monitoring the situation and will issue Flood Warnings if necessary. Our incident response staff are out on the ground checking defences and clearing any blockages from rivers.

"Phase 1 and 2 closure of Yarm floodgates took place on Tuesday afternoon. Please avoid using low lying footpaths near local watercourses.”

Heavy rainfall is set to continue throughout the day across Hartlepool and the North East as the Met Office's yellow weather warning remains in place until 12pm on Thursday, January 21.

The weather warning started at midnight on Tuesday, January 19.

Forecasters have warned that homes and businesses could be flooded and could lead to train and bus services being delayed or cancelled.

Spray and flooding could also lead to difficult driving conditions and some lane closures – which could mean some communities may be cut off by flooded roads.

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