Storm Babet turns railway station into a river as torrent of water floods through town


Storm Babet has turned a West Midlands train station into a fast-flowing river, halting services across the region.

The dramatic footage shows Wood End station in Tamworth-in-Arden, Solihull, completely inundated with water.

A video posted by Network Rail has shown the tracks submerged and only floodwater moving down the platform this afternoon.

Locals hailed the addition of the area’s new canal as the rail service promised to solve the issue.

Network Rail said the unusual sight was one of many such incidents across the country, with services suspended on a number of lines.

The rail company posted the footage earlier today on X, formerly known as Twitter, and elicited an immediate reaction online.

A spokesman for Network Rail said the video showed “significant flooding” at Wood End station, with teams currently responding to the inundation.

Stunned social media users quickly responded to the unusual sight, with one saying the station looked “more like a canal than a train station”.

Another commenter was shocked that the flooding had chosen the train track as its preferred water course.

They said: “Wow. Incredible that the rail track, usually elevated a bit, became the default water course for the rain. Not other streams, storm drains etc.”

Many people happily saw the funny side of the situation, one person said: “Get the mop and bucket out.”

Another quipped: “Are you offering a replacement boat service?”

Warwickshire is far from the only area suffering from Storm Babet’s effects, with the Met Office having issued a clutch of warnings for the UK.

Among them is a red weather warning for this coming Saturday, as forecasters fear rain could cause a danger to life in parts of Angus and Aberdeenshire, in Scotland.

The agency is anticipating between 70mm and 100mm of rainfall between 12am and 11.59pm on October 21, with “extensive flooding” putting people’s lives at risk and potentially cutting off some communities.

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