News
Weather update for Leeds as Storm Franklin brings flood warnings to Yorkshire
It is expected that the torrential wind and rain from last night will continue into today, with strong winds forecast until 1pm.
Sophie Smith -
21st February 2022 
Over 30 flood warnings are in place in and around Leeds this morning.
The Met Office issued a yellow weather warning after naming Storm Franklin as the latest reason for downpours and high winds.
It is expected that the torrential wind and rain from last night will continue into today, with strong winds forecast until 1pm.
The Met Office has named #StormFranklin
The storm is forecast to bring strong winds and heavy rain to the UK on Sunday and Monday
The strongest winds will be in Northern Ireland where an Amber weather warning has been issued
Stay #WeatherAware ⚠️ pic.twitter.com/gOektUciFQ
— Met Office (@metoffice) February 20, 2022
The government have placed over 30 red flood warnings across Leeds where flooding is expected to be a problem, and a further 12 amber flood warnings where flooding is possible.
The River Aire, River Calder, River Wharfe and Batley Beck and their surrounding areas that are expected to be most affected by the extreme weather.
For those travelling today, the advice is generally to stay put where you can and avoid flood waters.
Leeds City Council has shared tweets this morning that state the Tinley Viaduct is closed in both directions to high sided and vulnerable vehicles and another from the Northern Rail Service, which states that there will be no trains between Leeds and Manchester Victoria due to railway flooding.
The tweet also states "No replacement buses on the stopping services due to flooding" before asking people "DO NOT TRAVEL" in capital letters to emphaise the importance of the message.
Meanwhile Leeds City Station have advised passengers to check their routes and be prepared to "not travel".
⚠️ #StormFranklin has caused major flooding across parts of South and West Yorkshire over the past 36 hours
?️Some routes are closed this morning so please check your journey, and be prepared that you may not be able to travel
? Please visit @nationalrailenq for the latest
— Leeds City Station (@NetworkRailLDS) February 21, 2022
The West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service has stated online that they're receiving reports from people attempting to drive through flood water.
The rescue service is asking people to not ignore road closures or drive through any flood water during this time. Reports of flooding can be made to local authority or flooded roads to National Highways on 0300 123 5000, but the fire and rescue teams can only attend if "incidents that pose significant danger or endanger the life of members of the public".
Similarly, West Yorkshire Police are advertising a similar message after they received reports of drivers trying to drive through flood waters over 3ft tall.
Storms Dudley and Eunice made the front pages this week after storming through the UK and leaving a trail of destruction behind. So far, this has included the falling of trees, flying wheelie bins and flood warnings around much of the UK.
Leeds has had its fair share of extreme weather over the past few days, but it appears the weather warnings will be lifted tomorrow once Storm Franklin leaves the area.
To find out if your area in Leeds is expected to be affected by these unanticipated weather conditions, you can visit the UK Government website.
Feature Image- West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service
