River levels are still high but were slowly falling in areas including Worcester, Diglis and Kempsey as we went to print yesterday.

However, more rain is expected from today, provided by Storm Jorge, which could worsen flooding in the county.

Worcestershire County Council’s highways boss John Fraser said: Jon Fraser, from Highways said: “The situation is improving.

“The river is falling - it’s going to take a while until we can get the city centre back to normal.

“Going forward, there’s more rain this weekend.

“We may see the river come back up, so we need to stay vigilant.

“The work we did raising New Road has definitely proved its worth.

“There’s only been two days where we have had to close the road fully.

“And had we not done the work we did last year, the impact would have been a lot greater than it is now.”

The Crowngate Bus Station in Worcester was reopened on Friday morning after being closed because of flooding.

Severe congestion was reported by the bus company First Worcestershire because of the contraflow over the bridge in the city, causing delays.

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Despite claims that the flooding was a sign of some of the highest river levels ever, Dave Throup, from the Environment Agency, said this was not the case for the city.

Mr Throup said it was a complicated picture across the river network but added: “In a nutshell, levels are not the highest in Worcester.

“1947 was certainly much bigger and 2000 was slightly bigger. 2007 was about the same in Diglis but lower at Barbourne.”

The Environmental Agency had issued five flooding warnings on the River Severn in the county yesterday afternoon.

Flooding has hit businesses across the city in the past fortnight, with pubs and hotels such as the Old Rectifying House and Severn View Hotel by the river having to close.

With many of the city’s car parks also flooded, and roads blocked, businesses in the centre have seen a severe downturn in trade despite remaining open.

The Fownes hotel is currently providing twelve rooms to flood victims who have been referred to the hotel by Worcester City Council and Sanctuary Housing.

Assistant manager Julie Merrick said: “I have never seen flooding to this extent before."