Record-breaking floods left more than 630 Leicestershire homes underwater as stark new figures have revealed the scale of devastation. Official figures have confirmed that Leicester was the worst-hit area with 240 properties affected.
The Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Local Resilience Forum laid bare the extent of the crisis, revealing that Blaby district saw 170 homes damaged by rising waters. The severity became clear as river levels at Pillings Lock near Loughborough hit an historic high of 2.59m, prompting multiple emergency responses.
Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service faced their busiest night on Monday (January 6), receiving 380 calls and rescuing 87 people in total – including more than 60 from properties and 27 from vehicles – before declaring a major incident. The severe weather forced East Midlands Ambulance Servic to declare its first-ever critical incident as emergency calls surged.
READ MORE: ‘We’ve lost everything’ say owners of flooded pub
The widespread impact saw 70 homes affected in Charnwood and 55 properties damaged in Melton as river banks burst. Meanwhile, Leicestershire Police faced extraordinary pressure, handling more than 2,100 calls on January 6 – representing a 40 to 50 per cent increase above average daily demand.
More than 160 roads were left underwater as the Environment Agency issued a highly unusual severe flood warning. An emergency alert – one of only a few times the system has been used in the UK – was activated due to the imminent threat to life.
Stefan Laeger, flood duty manager at the Environment Agency, told the Press Association that the combination of heavy rain and melting snow was exacerbating the situation. The Local Resilience Forum warned these figures represent only the current known impact, with the number of affected properties “continuing to rise” as more reports come in.
We are now bringing you the latest updates on WhatsApp first