East Yorkshire flooding worsens as residents evacuated from homes

Residents in parts of East Yorkshire have been evacuated from their homes as flood water levels rise.

The flooding at East Cowick came as fields in the area, holding vast quantities of water from the River Aire, began to overtop.

Emergency services deployed boats to assist with evacuating residents.

On Friday afternoon, Humberside Fire and Rescue Service told residents in East Cowick to leave their homes as water levels began to rise again.

One resident, Jan Bray, said she and her husband had to leave their home on Thursday night with little more than the clothes they were wearing.

"We need to go and buy some clothes because we just dashed out with overnight things not expecting this devastation this morning," she said.

"We'll just have to stay at my daughters and try and emotionally deal with it really, it's just devastating."

Meanwhile in Shropshire, engineers are racing to repair damaged flood defences before a new storm which threatens to bring more heavy rain.

The Environment Agency (EA) aims to do the work ahead of Storm Jorge, which is due to hit the country this weekend.

At Snaith, crews from neighbouring South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue service were deployed to help pump thousands of litres of water away from people's homes.

A high-volume pump, capable of moving 8,000 litres of water a minute, has been sent to the area.

People in Snaith and the nearby village of East Cowick who have not already left properties at risk of flooding are being urged by local authorities to do so.

An East Riding of Yorkshire Council spokesman said: "Water levels in Snaith are receding slightly, but levels in East Cowick are continuing to rise."

Emergency services said water levels were continuing to rise and if they did not stabilise the water may move towards neighbouring West Cowick, resulting in an increased risk of flooding.

Barry Worthington said he had decided to stay in his home in East Cowick.

"There's people come from far and wide to help but it's a losing battle at the moment.

"We will be staying, when its your life's work, we will be stopping," he said.

Another resident, Katie Clements, said they had tried digging tunnels to direct the water into fields.

"A couple of residents had pumps in their garages and brought them out and they seemed to work for a little time, so we thought we were winning," she said.

"We didn't get pumps brought from any agency until it was far too late."

The EA said fields around East Cowick form part of the River Aire washlands, which are eight miles long and expected to store a vast amount of water.

"The tricky bit is more water has come down the Aire than was ever calculated so the washlands have overspilled into Snaith and East Cowick," said Frank de Planta, from the EA.

It comes after extensive flooding in Snaith on Thursday, when the EA warned the disruption could last for several days.

Mr de Planta said it was a matter of waiting for those washlands to empty back into the river.

Responding to rumours of looting on social media, Humberside Police said officers were patrolling in Snaith, Gowdall and East Cowick.

They said they had received no reports of break-ins or looting at evacuated properties.

Insp Craig Syms praised villagers for the "fantastic" community spirit they had been showing.

East Riding of Yorkshire Council said four tonnes of sand bags were used to try and stem the flow.

There are four flood warnings in place in the area and the Met Office has warned of further rain and strong winds over the weekend.

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