Road and rail disruption as fallen trees and flooding cause problems

East Lancashire was hit with persistent heavy rain throughout Saturday night which brought disruption to road and rail transport.

Flood warnings were put in place on Saturday (September 20) but were withdrawn by Sunday afternoon (September 21) after the rain subsided.

Trains between Blackburn and Manchester Victoria via Darwen and Bolton were cancelled on Saturday evening due to flooding on the line. Advertisement Advertisement

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Areas shaded in red show where a flood warning was in place(Image: Environment Agency)

Northern confirmed this morning the services were back up and running [1], though several trains on the route have been cancelled due to train crew being 'unavailable', the company said.

Rossendale was hit particularly hard, with flood warnings given for the River Irwell in Bacup and Stacksteads.

Haslingden Road between Haslingden and Rawtenstall is closed due to a fallen tree(Image: Carl Stephen Russell)

The A681 was closed on Sunday morning between the Tesco store in Haslingden and St Mary's Chambers in Rawtenstall [2] due to a fallen tree. Advertisement

Another fallen tree also blocked Burnley Road East between Waterfoot and Newchurch [3], causing traffic chaos across the town.

A fallen tree on Burnley Road East, Waterfoot(Image: Elaine Potts)

Stefan Laeger, flood duty manager for the Environment Agency, said: "Environment Agency teams will be out of the ground, taking action to reduce the impact of flooding and supporting local authorities in responding to surface water flooding.

"We advise people to stay away from swollen rivers and not to drive through flood water, as just 30cm of flowing water is enough to move your car."

References

^ Northern confirmed this morning the services were back up and running (www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk)
^ The A681 was closed on Sunday morning between the Tesco store in Haslingden and St Mary's Chambers in Rawtenstall (www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk)
^ Another fallen tree also blocked Burnley Road East between Waterfoot and Newchurch (www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk)