Last night, more than 20 flood warnings were issued at the highest alert level, endangering lives and health.

During the day, this number has more than halved, but 10 regions in the southwest of the country are still highly vulnerable. This applies to Gloucestershire, Dorset and Wales.

When the tide reaches its highest point tonight, areas that are already flooded will receive more water.

Asked to pack a suitcase

In Belfast in Northern Ireland, some residents were told to pack their suitcases if they had to leave the house at 12 o’clock local time. When the tide reached its peak, the city itself was fine, but many surrounding areas were damaged by water.

Sandbags and other forms of flood protection were implemented early on, and have helped a lot. But because there has been so much water in recent weeks, the water has also risen very high, and flood defenses that have helped in the past have not been able to contain all the water this year.

Record rainfall in Scotland

A total of 350 low-level flood warnings have been issued in England and Wales, while meteorologists warned of more rain and wind in Northern Ireland and Scotland. In Scotland, more rainfall fell in December than had ever been measured before, measurements dating back to 1910.

British authorities have prepared for the worst. The government’s crisis committee “Cobra” met today under the chairmanship of Environment Minister Owen Paterson.

There, those present received a briefing on how 3,500 kilometers of flood protection had been tested during the night, the BBC reported. This will protect 130,000 homes from waterlogging.

Prime Minister David Cameron tweeted that he had ensured that flood protection was in full readiness.

Some died

At Christmas, two people lost their lives due to the weather, today an 18-year-old boy was reported missing in Membland, on the southwest coast of England, after he went out to take pictures of the storm. In Cardigan, Wales, 30 properties were flooded and a pregnant woman had to be rescued from her home.

And flood defenses on the River Thames in east London were installed today to deal with high tides. The flood defense is one of the largest mobile flood defenses in the world. It reopened this afternoon.