Householders and businesses in the north of England and north Wales have been warned to prepare for flooding as the terrible weather that has caused devastation in the south-west and Midlands continues.
The Met Office was expecting 40mm of rain to fall widely, with up to 70mm in some places – the sort of levels that have been causing severe flooding in Cornwall, Devon, Gloucestershire and Worcestershire.
Forecasters say southern England and the Midlands are not yet off the hook as heavy showers may continue. Flood defences will be tested further as water pours off the hills into streams and rivers. More than 800 homes and business premises have already been flooded.
Eddy Carroll, the Met Office chief forecaster, said: "The heaviest and most persistent rain into Monday is expected to be over parts of northern England and north Wales.
"Here we can expect between 30 and 40mm of rain falling in many areas and up to 70mm of rain in parts of north-east England, continuing the risk of further flooding and travel disruption."
The Met Office issued an amber severe weather warning for north-east England, Wales, Yorkshire and the Humber.
Over the weekend four severe flood warnings – meaning lives are at risk were in place for Cornwall. By Monday morning all these had been lifted.
However, 265 flood warnings – flooding is expected – and 288 alerts (flooding possible) were in place covering all regions in England and Wales.
The prime minister, David Cameron, has promised to help communities in the south-west of England and the Midlands that are mopping up after more than a month's worth of rain fell within four days.
On Saturday night, a 21-year-old woman, who is believed to have been homeless, died after the tent she was sleeping in was struck by a tree that fell in high winds near Exeter city centre. Police were trying to trace her next of kin. Two men were injured in the incident.
A 70-year-old man died when his car crashed into a swollen river near Earith, Cambridgeshire. Local people described the conditions as "pretty shocking" although police said the accident could not be directly linked to the weather.
Over the weekend, police in Watford found the body of a 50-year-old man who apparently fell into a canal early on Saturday after friends lost him in fog. In Berkshire an elderly man feared drowned in the Thames last week remains missing. Last week, a driver died as his car was swept away by floodwater near Bristol.
But the government and the Environment Agency said most new defences, many introduced since floods in 2007, were working well and had protected more than 24,000 homes across England and Wales.
Towns and villages hit by floods at the weekend included Kempsey, Worcestershire, and Polperro in Cornwall.
In a blow to the Environment Agency, in Kempsey one of two large pumps forming a £1m flood defence system that was launched this summer failed and water from an overflowing brook poured into homes.
Michael Gill, who had to move out of his cottage for 18 months after the 2007 floods, said: "It's devastating. I've never known the water come up so quickly. The water went up three or four feet in a couple of hours."
By lunchtime on Sunday the water had been pumped out but left soggy carpets and ruined belongings.
Jan Perry, the landlady of the Old Mill House pub, Polperro, said she had never known flooding like it. At the height of the flooding on Saturday evening water was pouring through the ground floor.
Perry said she was insured but asked: "How much will that cost to renew now? This makes me angry, though, as we'd already been having discussions with the council and the Highways Agency about the problems with the drain in the street outside. As usual, it has to take something like this to get anyone to take proper notice."
Stephen Gilbert, the Lib Dem MP for St Austell and Newquay, Cornwall, said the government needed to make sure insurance companies were able to provide home and business owners with affordable cover.
"The last two days should be a wakeup call for a government that needs to grip this issue and do so quickly. We know flash flooding is increasing because of climate change and there's now little we can do to stop it, but the government must act to make sure people aren't left without insurance when the worst does happen."
Other places hit by the floods included Malmesbury, Wiltshire. Chris Harvey, watch manager at the town's fire station, said: "It's the worst flooding I can remember in the town, certainly worse than in 2007 when there were problems."
The Environment Agency produced a map showing the properties that its flood defences were protecting, including almost 2,000 in Gloucestershire and Worcestershire, which were the most badly hit by the floods five years ago, and 6,000 in Cornwall.
It said the flooding had been created by the exceptional conditions. The Met Office said in parts of the south-west around 150mm of rain – more than an average November – had fallen since Thursday on to ground and into rivers already swollen by a miserable summer and autumn.
David Cameron said in a tweet: "Shocking scenes of flooding in Cornwall and around the country. Govt will help ensure everything is being done to help."
Richard Benyon, the floods minister, said the success of many of the defences showed "the importance of continuing to spend capital on flood defences".
Emergency services carried out scores of rescues of people stranded in cars and homes. A one-year-old baby was plucked from a car in north Somerset.
Around 10 homes in Old Sodbury, south Gloucestershire, were evacuated following a landslip.
It was a miserable weekend for travellers, with flooded tracks and roads making travel difficult on rail and road. In many areas police and travel companies urged people to stay at home if possible.
By midweek it is expected to become drier and colder – with the possibility of snow next weekend in some places.
