Storm "Dennis" had brought enormous amounts of rain with him on the weekend. In some regions it rained as much on a day as it does on a monthly average.
London (dpa) - According to experts, the flood risk in the UK will remain for days. More than 1000 people have already had to leave their homes, and many roads and railroads have been closed.
Police discovered the body of a 55-year-old woman who had been hit by water the day before near Tenbury Wells, Worcestershire.
Storm "Dennis" particularly affected the south of Wales, where many people were brought to safety by boat. Since another storm had ripped through the country with a lot of rain just a week earlier, the soil was already dangerously softened. There were hundreds of flood warnings. "Dennis" swept across the country at a top speed of more than 140 kilometers an hour.
In view of the threatening situation, there was criticism of the government's crisis management. The opposition Labor party questioned why Prime Minister Boris Johnson had not convened the national Cobra crisis team. He had arranged this, for example, in a storm in November - before his election.
"We did what we could do," said George Eustice, the UK's new environment minister, Sky News. The "nature of climate change" is to blame for the extent of the damage, and the weather is becoming increasingly extreme. "We will never be able to protect every single household."
Eustice had been appointed environment minister as part of a major reshuffle. The 26th UN Climate Change Conference will be held in the UK in November.
