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Europe on alert for more bad weather
LONDON, England -- Britain's flood emergency has been declared the country's worst since 1947 by Prime Minister Tony Blair as Europe braced itself for more bad weather. The government said more than 3,000 properties have been inundated and thousands of evacuations were continuing late on Thursday as meteorologists warned worse was yet to come.
Across Europe, other countries were preparing for the weather system, which is already dumping heavy rain on northern France and is now moving towards Scandinavia. CNN weather anchor Mari Ramos said another area of bad weather has brought heavy rain and strong winds to Spain and Portugal and is spreading into southern France, northern Italy and the Alps -- areas already badly flooded in recent weeks. Norway, Finland and Sweden would also continue to experience wet weather throughout Friday. "The weather in Europe this time of the year and through the winter is highly influenced by the Icelandic Low, a semi-permanent anticyclone that begins drifting south during autumn," Ramos said. "Yet another area of low pressure is now spinning into the UK," she said. "While the winds are not expected to be as strong as with the last system, the rain will be a major problem." More evacuations underwayBlair visited some of the UK's worst affected towns on Thursday, including Bewdley and Shrewsbury in central England and York, in northern England. He flew over some of the stricken areas before meeting residents to hear their complaints about poor flood defences. "Thousands of people up and down the country have been amazingly stoical in these circumstances," he Blair said during a stop at an emergency control centre in Shrewsbury. "In the longer term, we have to try and work to deal with these problems on not just a national level, but on an international level.
The flooded River Severn near Worcester, England is now at ten times its normal level
"We have to put in the right protection for people against the possibility of floods and work to deal with the issue of climate change." On Thursday, evacuations of homes were ordered from Yorkshire in the north to Kent in the south. Severe flood warnings were issued for 14 areas in England and Wales. Rivers in Yorkshire and the river Severn in south west England were the main concerns. The Severn river had already swollen to ten times its normal level. In Yorkshire, the Environment Agency, the government organisation coordinating the flood emergency, said water levels on two rivers were continuing to rise. Residents of three villages in the area were preparing to evacuate their homes for the second time in 18 months. Last year Malton, Norton and Stamford Bridge were hit by floods that caused $29 million of damage. In Dover, on England's south coast, 10,000 families were told to boil drinking water after flooding was blamed for contaminating supplies with bacteria. Water service authorities along the coast said rationing might be introduced in coming days. Carbon dioxide overloadAlthough Europe can expect more flooding it may benefit in the long-term from reduced energy needs as global warming takes hold of the climate, according to a major scientific report published in the UK.
Pollution from cars is a factor in increasing global warming
Experts from England's University of East Anglia carried out the first comprehensive climate impact assessment for the European Union, drawing new conclusions about the effects of an overload of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere from traffic fumes and industry. Pollution from warming gases will have different impacts all over Europe and the report warns that environmental policies must be adaptable to meet the challenge. The launch at a London news conference on Wednesday comes ahead of an international climate change conference at the Hague (COP 6) in two weeks. World leaders meeting the Netherlands will attempt to reach deals on carbon trading, to offset the worst effects of greenhouse gases on the planet. The Associated Press & Reuters contributed to this report.
RELATED STORIES: Eight people die in Europe stormsOctober 30, 2000Seven people die in stormsOctober 30, 2000Report strengthens link between pollution, global warmingOctober 27, 2000Autumn's a fine time to travel and save moneySeptember 4, 2000European storms kill 136 peopleDecember 30, 1999 RELATED SITES: European Centre for Medium-Range Weather ForecastsThe UK Met OfficeThe Tornado and Storm Research OrganisationUniversity of East AngliaDepartment of Environment, Transport and the RegionsNote: Pages will open in a new browser windowExternal sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.
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