By Lucy Adautin
Passengers have been cautioned about potential disruptions after flooding rendered roads around a major UK airport “completely impassable.”
On Monday morning, those heading to Luton Airport found themselves “stuck for miles” as roads were entirely submerged following overnight flooding.
Videos from outside the airport captured the “absolute chaos” as traffic struggled to move through the waterlogged areas.
A Luton Airport spokesperson said: “Due to adverse weather, localised flooding is possible. Please allow extra time for your journey to and from the airport. Public transport could also be affected. For the latest status of your flight, please contact your airline.”
The Environment Agency has issued a flood warning for parts of England today.
By 7:40 am, the agency had announced 13 flood warnings, indicating that flooding is likely in these areas.
Regions under flood warnings include Atherstone in Warwickshire, Leighton Buzzard and Luton in Bedfordshire, as well as parts of London such as Wimbledon and South Ruislip.
The Met Office has also placed areas in Wales, much of southern England, the Midlands, and parts of north-west England and Yorkshire under a yellow rain warning.
An amber warning took effect at 5 am and will remain until 9 pm, affecting Worcester, Birmingham, Nottingham, and Hull.
Some of these regions could experience up to 100 to 120mm of rain today.
Environment Agency flood duty manager Sarah Cook said “persistent heavy rain and thunderstorms” could lead to some property flooding and travel disruption.
She said: “Persistent heavy rain and thunderstorms could lead to significant surface water flooding on Monday across parts of England. People should check their flood risk, sign up for free flood warnings and keep up to date with the latest situation as well as following @EnvAgency on X, formerly Twitter, for the latest flood updates.”
Met Office meteorologist Jonathan Vautrey previously told the PA news agency that Herefordshire, Gloucestershire and up towards the Wash and the Humber could see over a month’s worth of rain falling on Monday.
Police have confirmed a number of road closures across Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire following “substantial flooding” overnight.
Heavy rainfall on Sunday into Monday has seen areas such as Dunstable and Hitchin partially submerged.
Bedfordshire Police said it had closed off part of Dunstable High Street due to “substantial flooding”, with footage shared on social media showing cars battling high water around the Saracen’s Head pub.
A spokesperson said: “Due to the consistent overnight rainfall throughout the GTR network, a number of services are expected to be impacted this morning.
“The first services through the areas listen on the next message will report back on current track conditions.
“They will travel their route at reduced speeds, and so will likely run with delays and could be altered at short notice.”
Over the weekend, storms led to a frightening explosion in Stoke-on-Trent, sparked by lightning.
Firefighters and police responded to the scene on Bambury Street in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent, where a cordon was established, and residents were evacuated from their homes.
