12 Feb 2014

#UKfloods: your pictures

From the sandbagged in Surrey to the Somerset evacuees: victims of the floods are documenting the worst of the storms.

It has been raining for days – and now the wind is starting to cause havoc, with 100mph gales expected to hit the west coast on Wednesday night.

The Clifton Suspension Bridge has been closed for the first time in 150 years and 16 severe flood warnings remain in place along the Thames and the south west.

And while the weather has devastated homes and business, forced evacuations and disrupted travel plans, many of those affected have found time to get snap happy.

Volunteers, troops and emergency services have all been busy helping residents evacuate and supplying sandbags to keep away the worst of the flooding. But many also found the time to tweet:

The Environment Agency (EA) has come under mounting criticism for failing to prevent the worst effects of the weather in some areas. The scale of the anger was made apparent on Wednesday, after the agency revealed that staff were not being sent to flood-hit Wraysbury, Berkshire, because of resident’s hostility towards them.

But in parts of Hertfordshire and Worcestershire, locals have expressed their gratitude to EA area manager Dave Throup by setting up a Twitter account called @DaveThroupFans. The man himself is on Twitter @DaveThroupEA – but he has so far failed to acknowledge his fanbase.

And while instagram is more often taken up with selfies and plates of food, the pictures posted to the photo-sharing site in recent days have been more flood-focused, as these snaps from Staines, Windsor and Chertsey can testify:

Stormy weather on Friday 14 February caused mayhem across the UK. Two people died – a man was swept to his death from a cruise ship, while a minicab driver in central London was crushed by falling masonry. Your tweets tell the story of a wild night of 80mph winds.

The map above features tweets, videos and pictures which make reference to “flood” or “flooding”, and is powered by Esri UK.