THE body of an elderly woman was found in a flooded home in St Asaph yesterday.
The discovery was made as the worst widespread flooding in living memory hit towns and villages across Denbighshire with hundreds of homes evacuated.
North Wales Police confirmed that a body had been recovered from a flooded property in Tai’r Felin, near Mill Street in St Asaph.
Officers from the emergency services who were conducting house to house checks discovered the death around midday.
A spokesman for North Wales Police said: “An investigation is under way. “There are no suspicious circumstances and the death is currently being treated as unexplained.
“The next of kin have been informed.”
Meanwhile, residents in 500 properties in the city were advised to leave as the River Elwy burst its banks.
Ken Hogkinson, who lives on Glascoed Road, St Asaph, and is chairman of the St Asaph Flood Group, said: “Roe Park is completely devastated, every house has flooded.
“There are more than 60 homes there. The Roe is under water. It’s knee deep.
“I have seen nothing like this in St Asaph before. “St Asaph is like an island.”
Courtney Cox, 17, of Heol Afon, said: “We went to the Co-op store and found it was flooded. There was stuff floating everywhere.
“It was knee deep in the Roe, in other places it was waist deep.”
Alex Williams, of Lower Street, said her house had been flooded.
She said: “The flooding’s really bad. “I walked up the high street and the water was up to my ankles, I came down five minutes later and the water was up to my chest.
Among the Ruthin properties flooded was the new Glasdir development.
“I’d like to pay tribute to the postmen of Ruthin who were like trained emergency workers in helping residents at Glasdir,” said resident and town councillor Katy Morgan Williams.
“We were woken at 7.30am by our postman. There was a team of postmen helping people to move their furniture upstairs. The efforts of people to help each other demonstrates what a close-knit, community focused town this is.”
Concerns were raised about the Glasdir development being on a floodplain in 2006 by Ruthin Town Council before it was built.
A spokesman for Taylor Wimpey said yesterday: “Our primary concern is for the immediate health and safety of our residents at Glasdir and the wider community in Ruthin.
“Although extensive flood defences were implemented prior to our ownership of the site, due to the unprecedented volume of rainfall, Ruthin, like several other areas of North Wales has been severely affected.
“We contacted the Welsh Environment Agency who are sending a response team. In addition, two of our directors are on site and are working closely and co-operating with the emergency services. We will address any issues that arise once we know the full scale of the problem.” An emergency shelter was set up at St Asaph Leisure Centre after the river reached its highest ever levels following persistent downpours.
The Talardy Hotel and The Plough pub in St Asaph were flooded, as were long stretches of the A55. St Asaph City councillor Denise Hogkinson, who lives on Glascoed Road, said: “It is chaos.
“About 100 people spent the night in the sports centre and the Red Cross brought bed and blankets.”
Ysgol Glan Clwyd and Ysgol Esgob Morgan were both closed yesterday and the slip road of the A55 westbound at St Asaph was shut.
Former St Asaph mayor, Cllr Dewi Roberts, said the flood warning system put in place by the Environment Agency, Denbighshire Council and the city council had worked.
Properties in Mwrog Street in Ruthin were also flooded, with The Park Place Pub and nearby Castle Park Cafe being affected.
According to the Met Office, the Rhyl weather station recorded 27.2mm of rain between 9am on Monday and 9am on Tuesday. The average for the whole of November is 76.4mm.
Anyone concerned about flooding in their area should contact the Environment Agency Floodline on 0845 988 1188, using quickdial 191907 for the latest information.
The First Minister of Wales, Carwyn Jones, will visit some of the areas in North Wales worst affected by the flooding this afternoon.
A Welsh Government spokesman said: “The Welsh Government is monitoring the developing situation in North Wales very closely and is in direct contact with all the emergency services and other agencies involved through our Resilience Team.
“Ministers and senior civil servants are being kept informed of any developments and will take action to draw in additional support if required.”
Car driver rescued by boat from flooded road
A WOMAN trapped in her car by flood water had to be rescued by firefighters in a boat.
The driver was travelling at about 5.20pm last night along the A525 near Bangor-on-Dee – one of many Wrexham area villages coping with deluges of rain in the last couple of days.
Fire crews from Wrexham and Deeside turned out to the scene. They paddled out to the motorist and got her back to safety.
The victim was then placed in an ambulance and driven to Wrexham Maelor Hospital for a check up.
Large parts of Wrexham were engulfed by water as flooding hit the area. Roads were closed, trains delayed and bus services suspended with parts of the county borough under several feet of water.
Bangor-on-Dee was one of the worst hit areas with dozens of fields and several main routes into the village closed due to flood water.
Households, totalling 437, received a call from the Environment Agency in the early hours of the morning warning them their properties could be at risk. A nearby resident said: “The river hasn’t been this high since 2000 when residents were evacuated.
“The Environment Agency called me at 2.45am and told us to move our belongings and make sure that our pets were secure.”
The straight mile and the slip road leading to the old bridge in Bangor-on-Dee were both closed by Wrexham Council due to flooding. Later in the day the A525 through Bangor-on-Dee was closed after flood waters spread.
In Rossett the beer garden of The Alyn pub was submerged under water and flood fences were raised to prevent water from the River Alyn entering the property.
A public footpath usually used by dog walkers was also left under several metres of water.
Speaking yesterday Helen Belaney, a chef at The Alyn said: “When I left work at 10pm last night the river was high but hadn’t breached its banks. When I came in this morning at 8.30am the flood defences were up and the beer garden was under water.
“At the moment the water is about half a metre from the top of the bridge and up to the first step outside the pub.
“We’re open as usual though.”
In Tanyfron the link road at the junction for the B5101 Brymbo Road was closed after several cars were reported to have got stuck in flood water. As a result the Arriva bus service from Wrexham to Brymbo was affected.
One of the main routes onto Wrexham Industrial Estate via Cefn Road was partially shut.
And in Plas Madoc the B6505 bridge was closed and Wrexham Council was forced to close a civic amenity site on the estate after it was submerged under four feet of water.
The Barmouth to Wrexham bus service was another which had to be diverted after flooding issues at Corwen prevented a through service.
Both Wrexham Council and the Environment Agency worked throughout the day to monitor the situation across the area.
The emergency services in North Wales reiterated their message to residents not to take any unnecessary risks.
Trains from Wrexham General were also delayed, including the 4.01pm Cardiff Central to Holyhead service via Wrexham.
In the morning there was also a 45-minute closure of the Wrexham to Chester line between 7.45am and 8.30am because of a track circuit failure at Balderton tunnel
An Environment Agency (EA) Wales spokesman said: “We are working closely with North Wales Fire and Rescue Service, North Wales Police and other authorities to respond to the widespread flooding across North Wales.
“We have issued flood warnings to nearly 1,000 properties across Wales since the heavy rainfall began. We are urging people to remain vigilant and to keep clear of swollen rivers.”
The EA had a number of flood warnings in place last night including Bangor-on-Dee and Lower Dee Valley from Llangollen to Chester. There were also flood alerts at Mold, Rossett and Pontblyddyn.
For latest information call Floodline on 0845 988 1188.
Anxious time for residents as floods creep closer to their homes
FLOOD water came close to entering homes as Flintshire was hit by more rain yesterday.
Mold residents, who have been plagued by flooding in the past, reported lucky escapes.
Meanwhile fields, car parks and roads disappeared under water.
Delfryn House and Delfryn Lodge hospitals in Mold were cut off when Argoed Hall Lane flooded.
Cars lined dry land at the entrance to the road and visitors and staff made their way to the hospitals on foot across a field.
A neighbour gave a helping hand with a tractor.
Fields off the A494 in Mold were under water, as was Love Lane car park in the town.
A stream burst its banks at Loggerheads Country Park submerging the grounds.
Flintshire councillor for Mold West, Brian Lloyd said he spent yesterday morning at Park Avenue due to flooding concerns.
Cllr Lloyd told the Leader the road was covered in water but it did not enter properties.
Emergency services were present at the scene due to concerns about water entering a sub-station, but the situation was kept under control.
According to the Met Office, the Hawarden weather station recorded 13.8mm of rain between 9am on Monday and 9am on Tuesday. The average rainfall for the month of November was 75.5mm.