Pictures: three named storms brought havoc to Herefordshire

Pictured is Reg Curtis wading through the water as it starts to recede.

Storm Dudley hit on February 16 and was swiftly followed by Storms Eunice on Friday, February 18, and Storm Franklin on Sunday, February 20, bringing widespread flooding to Herefordshire and battering the county with high winds gusting at up to 60mph.

Flooding at Bishops Meadow in Hereford..

Roads were closed during Eunice, and Holme Lacy House Hotel, near Hereford, was evacuated after being struck by a falling tree.

Holme Lacy House Hotel, near Hereford, was hit by a falling tree during Storm Eunice on Friday. Picture: Malcolm Russell/Mercia Accident Rescue Service

Heavy rainfall saw alerts issued for rivers across the county and in Hereford the riverside paths and King George V playing fields disappeared under water.

Bishop's Meadow, Hereford flood Michael Eden Storm Franklin

Across the county, other rivers also rose, with the Teme at Leintwardine breaking its banks and shutting the A4110 and the A4113, with firefighters called to the rescue of a driver trapped in the floodwaters on Sunday evening.

Storm Franklin, Canary Bridge, Hereford, Ade Radnor

By Monday morning, February 21, Eardisland village and Leintwardine had been cut off by flooding, though the Lion Inn in Leintwardine was able to keep the water out, thanks to its flood defences.

Pictured is the flooded road that cut off access to Eardisland this morning.

In Symonds Yat, the garden and cellars at Ye Olde Ferrie Inn in Symonds Yat were under water, two years after they 'lost everything' in 2020's Storm Dennis. But they were quickly back in business after a clean-up by staff.

Storm Franklin Old Bridge Hereford Stuart Townsend

In Hereford the Wye peaked at 5.38 metres at the Old Bridge in Hereford, and, for the the third time in two years, Greyfriars Avenue suffered a major flood. In January this year, five homes were flooded again, with some new flood defences at houses failing.

Storm Franklin flooding February 2022: The river Wye swelled and reached a heigh of almost 5.4 metres in Hereford at the Old Bridge, flooding nearby homes. Picture: Jan Laudar Sabo

Hereford’s Old Wye Bridge was also closed to both pedestrians and traffic over concerns for safety, as the Wye, which had initially been forecast to peak on Monday morning, February 21, kept rising, flooding Greyfriars Avenue, which had been badly hit in 2020. Superintendent Edd Williams, chair of Herefordshire’s tactical co-ordination group, a multi-agency group tasked with responding to local incidents, said on Monday night that the bridge had been closed due to the rising river levels, with a revised peak of about 5.4 metres overnight. Tuesday saw waters beginning to recede in Hereford, having peaked at 5.38 metres.

River Lugg by Ade Radnor

More than 40 Herefordshire schools shut a day early for the February half-term as Storm Eunice battered the county, and although Herefordshire escaped the worst of Storm Eunice, it still left more than 2,000 homes without power, with the south of the county around Ross-on-Wye worst affected.

The waterlogged countryse around Leintwardine. Picture by John Savery.

The Hereford Times relaunched the flood appeal it had established after Storm Dennis in February 2020, when the river Wye in Hereford peaked at the highest level ever. The appeal went onto raise more than £80,000 thanks to readers’ generosity.