A new weather warning has been issued for Herefordshire... Storm Jorge is approaching!

Today (Friday) rain and hill snow will again push across the area during the morning, lasting much of the day. It will be followed heavy rain over the weekend.

Met Office yellow warnings for wind are in place for the county on Saturday and Sunday.

Flooding is expected across the county, with Herefordshire Council warning residents to take action in case rivers burst their banks again.

The Environment Agency has issued five flood alerts for Herefordshire meaning flooding is possible so people should be prepared. The alerts cover the rivers Wye, Lugg, Arrow, Frome and Upper Teme.

Forecast information currently suggests that parts of Herefordshire may be looking at similar river levels to those experienced in October 2019, according to Herefordshire Council and the Environment Agency.

A council spokesperson said: "It is expected that the Greyfriars area of Hereford will experience flooding on Saturday evening with Wye levels predicted to reach between 5.2m and 5.5m.

"Barriers are still in place at the Old Wye Bridge. Pumps are ready to be deployed for Hampton Bishop if required, and properties in Leintwardine and Walford may also be affected. Residents in these areas are advised to move possessions and valuables off the ground or to safety.

"Property flood protection products should be activated, such as flood barriers and air brick covers. Residents should have a bag ready with vital items like medicines and insurance documents.

Flooding may also disrupt the county’s road networks, with the A4110 and A4113 near Leintwardine, A438 at Letton, and Holme Lacy Road and Watery Lane in Hereford all expected to experience flooding.

"Repair works to the B4399 Holme Lacy Causeway have been withdrawn in anticipation of the floods."

RELATED NEWS: Work to repair storm-hit road could take three weeks

Named by the Spanish meteorological service Agencia Estatal de Meteorología (AEMET) on Thursday, Storm Jorge will track across the north-west of the UK over the weekend.

Paul Gundersen, chief meteorologist at the Met Office, said: “This weekend we’ll see another named storm bring strong winds to parts of the UK with several wind and rain warnings in place.

“On Friday a band of rain associated with Storm Jorge will move across the UK. We have issued rain warnings for parts of Wales and northern England, where rain will be heaviest and we could see 60-80mm possible over the highest ground. 

"South-westerly winds will strengthen through Saturday morning and it’ll turn widely windy except for northern Scotland, with wind warnings in place for Northern Ireland, Wales, southern Scotland and much of England. 

"Where warnings are in place gusts of 50-60mph are likely quite widely with 65-70mph possible in coastal areas, however the strongest and most damaging winds are expected across the Republic of Ireland.”

Why is this storm not called Ellen?

The system will not be named Ellen but will align with the Met Office's European partners and be referred to as 'Jorge'.

Dan Harris, Met Office deputy chief meteorologist, said: "As Storm Jorge begins to weaken and clear later on Saturday we'll see a trend back to slightly colder conditions, with some snow over hills and mountains in the north of the UK and a mixture of rain and hail showers in the south. Away from much of Scotland it'll remain blustery on Sunday, although not quite as windy as Saturday.

"The weather looks likely to remain rather cold and showery into next week and there's a chance of further wet and windy weather around the middle of the week, although confidence in details are low at this stage."

Some roads in Herefordshire remain closed by flooding. They include:

  • A4113 Leintwardine
  • B4164 Symonds Yat
  • B4399 Holme Lacy Causeway
  • B4224 Fiddler’s Green to Fownhope

The B4224 Mordiford Bridge has now re-opened.

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