(Title Image: BBC Wales)
A third Atlantic storm of February 2020, Storm Jorge, brought high winds and heavy rain to areas already affected by storms Ciara and Dennis, with the police briefly declaring a “critical incident” in Pontypridd and Cardiff due to rising water levels in the River Taff and River Ely.
Rail services were severely impacted, with the south Wales mainline and Vale of Glamorgan lines being closed for much of Friday (28th February 2020) due to flooding near Llanharan.
The River Dyfi in Machynlleth also flooded (again), with the A487 being closed several times over the last few weeks. There was also serious flooding near Welshpool Airport which resulted in several vehicles needing rescue.
The Met Office’s long-range forecast is for unsettled weather to continue to dominate weather patterns until at least mid-March.
The UK Government has, as of yet, not responded to Welsh Government and Labour MP requests for no-strings-attached emergency flood relief.
Plaid Cymru leader, Adam Price AM (Plaid, Carms. E. & Dinefwr) said Wales had to step up a gear, adding that, “Flooding is becoming commonplace and the Welsh Government must provide Natural Resources Wales and local authorities additional resources to deal with this in the long term – alongside a flood prevention strategy with investment in more hard and soft defences to protect our communities.”