Video: Farm marooned after Towy River burst its banks
© Robert Melen Photography Livestock farms near Carmarthen, South Wales, have been left submerged after severe flooding in the Towy Valley.
The farmhouse and outbuildings below were caught in the deluge in Glantowy, after the River Towy burst its banks near Llandeilo on Saturday .
Farm owner, dairy farmer Deryc Rees, expressed his frustration over the flooding on Twitter.
See also: Q&A: What are your rights when farmland is flooded?
Mr Rees said he runs “very productive farms in the growing season”, but it is “not much fun when it floods”.
He added: “The worst of it is that the floods have increased in severity and frequency over these last few decades.”
Swansea-based photographer Robert Melen took the photos and he also flew a drone over the farmland from Llangunnor Parish Church in Carmarthen to capture a video of the extensive flooding damage.
Mr Melen said: “The Towy Valley flood plain was left under several feet of water after torrential rainfall. Flooding in the area is getting far more frequent and more severe – these heavy spells of rain are getting worse.
“The floodwater just went on for miles. It severely affects farmers and restricts their movements and livelihoods.
“When flooding like this occurs, farms get cut off from the community. I don’t know how they cope. They can’t even get out to the shops.”
© Robert Melen Photography
Natural Resources Wales had 25 floods warnings and 42 flood alerts in place for Wales on Thursday (12 January).
Farmers and land managers can search for flood warnings and alerts on its website or by calling the Floodline 0345 988 1188 (24-hour service).
Heavy rain forecast
The Met Office issued a yellow weather warning for heavy rain across the South West and much of South Wales until 5pm on Thursday evening.
Large amounts of rainfall are forecast to fall across South and Mid Wales, especially the eastern Valleys areas.
The persistent wet weather over the past fortnight has also caused flooding to farms in English counties, in particular Herefordshire and the South West.
Parts of Scotland have also been hit by severe flooding and two flood warnings issued by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency for Ayr to Troon and Innerpeffray to Bridge of Earn remain in place on Thursday.
The Met Office said wet and windy conditions will continue to dominate towards the weekend, but will be replaced by a transition to colder weather with a chance of wintry showers over the next 10 days.
Rural insurer NFU Mutual said, with yellow weather warnings in place, it was closely monitoring the situation.
Its rural affairs specialist, Hannah Binns, said having a farm flood plan in place detailing everyone’s roles can help, should the worst happen.
“Farmers can also identify higher ground to move livestock to if water levels rise and move vulnerable machinery stocks and veterinary resupplies to safer areas,” she added.
Study puts value on Scotland’s trees that prevent flooding
A new study [PDF] estimates Scotland’s woodlands could be worth almost £100m a year with their capacity to store water and slow down run-off water to downstream communities after heavy rain.
With the prospect of wetter winters because of climate change, and more intense rainfall in summer, the ability of trees to reduce flood risk is becoming increasingly important.
The research was carried out by Forest Research and jointly funded by Scottish Forestry, the Forestry Commission and the Welsh government.
Pat Snowdon, from Scottish Forestry, said: “Woodlands have long been associated with an ability to reduce flooding. The latest models allow researchers to quantify how woodlands create a ‘sponge’ effect, reducing rapid run-off that causes flooding.
“This research provides new data that fills a major evidence gap on the economic value of woodlands.”