Rescue services workers transporting flood victims to safety
navigate the flood waters in the streets of Cockermouth village,
England. (AP Photo/Scott Heppell) See more images of the
flooding and rescue operation in our slideshow below.
The normally picturesque view of England’s Lake District saw itself become the scene of a rescue operation as helicopters and lifeboats plucked hundreds residents and brought them to safety. The area recorded the most rainfall ever recorded in the nation and the weather was responsible for the death of a local constable.
Widespread heavy rain across England and Ireland caused flooding that brought floods as deep as eight feet and engorged rivers that brought down bridges. England set a national rainfall record when 12.3 inches of rain fell in just 24 hours last week at Seathwaite Farm according to Britain’s Met Office.
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In the town of Cockermouth, officials estimate 1,000 homes were flooded and more than 200 people were rescued. Local emergency responders and British soldiers conducted house to house searches to extract those struck by the floods. The town, 300 miles northwest of London, is at the confluence of the Cocker and Derwent rivers and is the birthplaces of poet William Woodsworth.
Using lifeboats, area residents were plucked from porches. Royal Air Force helicopters dropped soldiers down on ropes that broke through roofs and lifted residents to safety.
Queen Elizabeth II said in a statement, “I have been deeply concerned and saddened by the dreadful flooding across Britain and the devastation it has caused. My thoughts and prayers are with all those who have been affected and whose homes and livelihoods have been damaged.”
An aerial view of the destroyed Northside bridge, in Workington
England as floods submerge large parts of Cumbria. Military
helicopters winched dozens of people to safety and emergency
workers in inflatable boats rescued scores more as floods on
Friday swamped northern England's picturesque Lake District.
(AP Photo/ Peter Byrne/PA) See more images of the
flooding and rescue operation in our slideshow below.
Constable Bill Barker died when he was swept into flood waters following a major bridge collapse. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said, “Police Constable Bill Barker died trying to save the lives of others. He was a very heroic, very brave man.”
In Ireland, the country’s second largest city, Cork, shut down the center of the city which was under three feet of water. Many other towns and villages found themselves trying to escape flood waters as Ireland’s Defense Forces fanned out to conduct rescue operations.
The Irish weather service Met Éireann said November had been exceedingly wet with areas “having one and a half to two times the normal rainfall for the whole month.” Weather forecasts called for a possible return of rain this week to the area prompting concerns of additional flooding.
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