Guardian: Householders in some parts of the north of England have been warned to take their Christmas presents and other valuables upstairs as the Environment Agency issued 149 flood warnings seven of them severe and 123 alerts.
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency issued five flood alerts and eight flood warnings.
The warnings south of the border, which mainly cover the north-west and north-east of England and Wales, come as forecasters said up to 120mm (4.7in) of rain could fall in some areas...