School closures in full as Storm Chandra leaves towns underwater

STORM Chandra has forced hundreds of school closures across the country as towns are left underwater amid severe flooding.

The Met Office has issued a new “danger to life” warning – with hundreds of flood alerts in place across the country today.

Schools in Somerset, Devon and Northern Ireland, have been forced to close their doors after the weather sparked chaos for another day.

In Somerset, the council declared a major incident, saying there had been “extensive flooding overnight”.

Seven schools in the county have been forced to either fully or partially close today as a result due to the severe conditions.

Staff say they decided to shut their doors over concerns about pupils and teachers getting in safely.

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And some schools have even reported flooding and damage to classrooms, unable to open until a deep clean is complete.

While in Devon, almost a dozen schools have been affected by the weather.

Many have been forced to close for the entire day with others enforcing partial closures with some opting to open from 10am onwards.

In Northern Ireland, it’s been confirmed that more than 350 schools have shut their doors

Yesterday, more than 300 were forced to close as Belfast Met campuses moved classes online for thousands of pupils.

The South Eastern Regional College (SERC) also chose to close its campuses while Ulster University closed its Belfast, Coleraine and Jordanstown campuses.

Elsewhere in England, seven schools were forced to close in Herefordshire yesterday amid concerns for the safety of both staff and pupils.

Dorset Council reported 12 closures on Tuesday, with five schools partially open.

The south-west is braced for further downpours tomorrow after the Met Office confirmed a yellow weather warning for rain is in place.

The forecaster warned of the “danger to life” risks due to fast-flowing or deep floodwater in the region.

The UK Health Security Agency has also confirmed a number of cold-health alerts across northern England are in place until Friday.

This morning, National Highways confirmed the M5 was closed near Exeter due to flooding – sparking rush-hour chaos.

RAC‘s Nick Mullender warned motorists to avoid driving through standing water.

Some areas across the UK, including worst-hit south-west England and Northern Ireland provisionally set new January daily rainfall records.

Katesbridge, in Northern Ireland, has provisionally recorded more than 10 centimetres of rain.

Belfast City Airport cancelled dozens of flights, while ferry crossings were also impacted during the horrific conditions.

Locals in Dorset, Somerset and east Devon are also continuing the clear-up operation after their towns were submerged by severe flooding yesterday.

Somerset Council estimated 50 properties had been affected across Ilminster, West Coker, Taunton, Mudford and West Camel.

Firefighters in the region rescued people from 25 vehicles stranded in 3ft-high floodwater yesterday morning.

Many parts of the country are still recovering from the chaos caused by Storm Ingrid last weekend.