WORLD
Storm Conall brings flooding and severe travel disruption, closing rail lines
Baku, November 27, AZERTAC
Storm Conall has brought heavy rain to parts of southeast England, triggering flooding that has blocked key rail lines, according to Sky News.
Commuters are being warned of "severe disruption" on some parts of the network.
The Met Office predicted the third named storm of the season could bring up to 50mm (two inches) of rain on Wednesday - just days after torrential rain from Storm Bert over the weekend.
The highest rainfall was recorded on the Isle of Wight with 43.3mm (1.7in) in a 24-hour period until 10am.
The storm is forecast to deepen further to bring strong winds across the Netherlands later on Wednesday and into Thursday.
A Met Office yellow rain warning had covered southern England, including Kent, Sussex, Surrey, Essex, Hampshire, Dorset, parts of London and the Isle of Wight.
A previous warning around Plymouth in Devon was lifted early on Wednesday morning.
Between 15 and 20mm of rain had been forecast, with 30 to 40mm in some areas and a lower chance of 50mm in parts of the South East, the Met Office said.
Flooding and other incidents have affected several train operators across the region because of Storm Conall including Thameslink, Gatwick Express, Great Northern, South Western and Southern.
National Rail is warning of "severe disruption" on parts of the network.
Thameslink said there are long delays or reduced services on routes in and out of London to St Albans, Sutton, Bedford and Brighton. Trains are suspended between Cambridge and Brighton.
Tunnels at Farringdon and Bletchingley both flooded.
Meanwhile Southern has suspended Gatwick Express services. There are also no trains running between Redhill and Tonbridge.
Great Western and South Western are reporting delays to services travelling through the Southampton area because of flooding and a fallen tree. It is affecting journeys to and from Cardiff Central, Bristol Temple Meads, London Waterloo and Portsmouth.
There are also problems between Guildford and Wokingham / Farnham. Trains are expected to be cancelled or delayed until 6pm.
On the Isle of Wight, services are affected between Ryde Esplanade and Ryde St Johns Road.
On Wednesday afternoon there were more than 80 flood warnings and nearly 160 flood alerts in place in England.
A severe flood warning, meaning there is danger to life, was still in place in Billing Aquadrome holiday park and the surrounding parks next to the River Nene in Northampton.