Heavy rain causes severe flooding in UK

Heavy rain in England and Wales has caused the death of one man after he was sucked down a man hole in Hull when attempting to clear flood water. A teenage boy was also killed after being swept away by flood water of the River Sheaf, Sheffield. The flooding has inundated large areas of land, many houses and caused travel chaos with many roads and railways flooded or blocked by stranded vehicles, especially in northern England.

75 mm of rain in some areas has caused severe flooding, which could get worse as forecasters predict one month's worth of rain will fall in the next 24 hours.

A state of emergency has been declared in Hull and over 120 schools have been closed in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. The fire service, police and coast guards have attempted many rescues today with helicopters used to remove people from stranded houses to temporary shelters.

Areas also affected are along the River Severn, the River Teme, and the River Aire.

The rain also affected the start of Wimbledon and created more problems for the clear-up at the end of another "mud bath" Glastonbury festival.