Severe flood warning issued as the UK faces more weather disruptions

LONDON (AP) — Serious flooding swamped parts of England and snow forced three airports to close temporarily Tuesday as wet and icy weather that was expected to last another day combined to extend travel chaos that has plagued the U.K. since the start of the year.

Swaths of the Midlands in England were under water and more than 200 flood warnings were in place at one point as rivers overflowed and continued to inundate villages and drown farmland.

A severe flood warning indicating life-threatening conditions was issued for the River Soar in Leicestershire where several trailer parks sit on the flood plain. Aerial photos showed mobile homes in Barrow Upon Soar surrounded by muddy waters and a car sunken up to its windows.

Several train lines and major roads were also closed because of wet and icy conditions as snow and ice caused disruptions in northern England and Scotland.

Airport runways in Manchester and Liverpool in northwest England, and Aberdeen in northeast Scotland, had to close for part of the morning while crews cleared snow.

Since Monday, dozens of people have been rescued from flooded homes and stranded cars in the Midlands, and hundreds of schools were closed for the first days of classes this year in northern areas of the U.K.

Duaa Abdulal said she was stuck upstairs with her mother and sister in Loughborough, Leicestershire after a repeat event of flooding that damaged the home a year ago.

“Thankfully, today we managed to get everything upstairs when we got the flood warning," Abdulal said. “We’re still recovering from last year, actually, we haven’t finished refurbishing the house, so it’s stressful.”

Much of Britain has been hit by strong winds and periods of precipitation that struck before New Year's Day and snuffed out several fireworks displays and other celebrations. Several communities have faced significant flooding since the start of the year.

The body of a man found in a flooded area near the River Aire in northern England was informally identified and North Yorkshire police said they were seeking his family.

A car sits in the floods of the river Soar in Barrow Upon Soar, England, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025.(AP Photo/Darren Staples)

Flooded fields are seen in Glen Parva, Leicester, England, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (Gareth Fuller/PA via AP)

A tent sits in the floods of the river Soar at the caravan parks in Barrow Upon Soar, England, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025.(AP Photo/Darren Staples)

The Little Venice caravan park is seen surrounded by rising flood water in Yalding, Kent, England, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (Gareth Fuller/PA via AP)

A man wearing waders carries a dog at The Little Venice caravan park, surrounded by rising flood water, in Yalding, England, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025, as weather warnings were issued across much of the UK. (Gareth Fuller/PA via AP)

Flooded fields are seen in Glen Parva, Leicester, England, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (Gareth Fuller/PA via AP)

Firemen help residents in the flooded area of Barrow Upon Soar, England, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025.(AP Photo/Darren Staples)

A view of flooding around Pulborough in West Sussex, England, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (Andrew Matthews/PA via AP)

Flooded banks of the river Soar in Barrow Upon Soar, England, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025.(AP Photo/Darren Staples)

A car sits in the floods of the river Soar in Barrow Upon Soar, England, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025.(AP Photo/Darren Staples)

Caravans and cars sit in the floods of the river Soar in Barrow Upon Soar, England, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025.(AP Photo/Darren Staples)

A Ukrainian drone strike killed one person and wounded three others in the Russian city of Voronezh, local officials said Sunday.

A young woman died overnight in a hospital intensive care unit after debris from a drone fell on a house during the attack on Saturday, regional Gov. Alexander Gusev said on Telegram.

Three other people were wounded and more than 10 apartment buildings, private houses and a high school were damaged, he said, adding that air defenses shot down 17 drones over Voronezh. The city is home to just over 1 million people and lies some 250 kilometers (155 miles) from the Ukrainian border.

The attack came the day after Russia bombarded Ukraine with hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles overnight into Friday, killing at least four people in the capital Kyiv, according to Ukrainian officials.

For only the second time in the nearly four-year war, Russia used a powerful new hypersonic missile that struck western Ukraine in a clear warning to Kyiv and NATO.

The intense barrage and the launch of the nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile followed reports of major progress in talks between Ukraine and its allies on how to defend the country from further aggression by Moscow if a U.S.-led peace deal is struck.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Saturday in his nightly address that Ukrainian negotiators “continue to communicate with the American side.”

Chief negotiator Rustem Umerov was in contact with U.S. partners Saturday, he said.

Separately, Ukraine’s General Staff said Russia targeted Ukraine with 154 drones overnight into Sunday and 125 were shot down.

Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

This photo provided by the Ukrainian Security Service on Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, shows a fragment believed to be a part of a Russian Oreshnik intermediate range hypersonic ballistic missile that hit the Lviv region. (Ukrainian Security Service via AP)

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, second left, listens to British Defense Secretary John Healey during their meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Danylo Antoniuk)