UK weather: thousands unable to return home after houses ruined by floods

Although floodwaters are said to be receding, authorities warn the danger is not over and there could be 'exceptionally high tides' late on Friday

A rest centre set up at Cliff Park for people evacuated from the East Anglian coast

Thousands of people will be forced to spend another night away from their homes this evening after the worst tidal surge for more than 60 years caused heavy flooding and travel chaos throughout the country.

Families across the East Coast are sheltering in evacuation centres, while shopkeepers were assessing stock damage and counting the cost of the dramatic coastal floods.

Although floodwaters are said to be receding, the Government warned the danger was not over and there would be "exceptionally high tides" late on Friday and on Saturday.

In Hemsby, a village in Norfolk, seven families lost their homes to the sea, while in Boston, Lincolnshire, more than 250 people were taken to evacuation centres on Thursday night.

Norfolk Police told thousands of residents there was no longer a need to stay away from their homes. However, many houses remain uninhabitable due to water damage.

As of midafternoon on Friday, there were 12 severe flood warnings, which are only issued when flooding poses a danger to life.
One of two men who died yesterday after being struck by a falling tree during the storm has been named by police as John White, 83, of Retford, Nottinghamshire.
The severe storms also chaos for travellers with roads flooded and many rail services unable to run.
East Anglia, southern England and Wales bore the brunt of the disruption, with a number of Greater Anglia train company services unable to operate, and some Norwich to London trains having to be cancelled.
Passengers were warned there would be no service on the Ipswich-Lowestoft route until at least 2pm today.

^{Collapsed houses lie on the beach after a storm surge in Hemsby, Norfolk. Photo: Reuters}
Poor rail conditions meant First Capital Connect had to reduce the number of trains running between Stevenage and London Kings Cross/Moorgate via Hertford North, while there were delays of up to 40 minutes throughout the Southeastern train company's routes.
The storms left many major roads flooded. Among the roads closed were the A12 in Blythburgh in Suffolk; A16 in Boston in Lincolnshire, the A63 in Hull and the A178 in Hartlepool. Some roads in Kent were flooded.
Following a meeting of the Government's Cobra emergencies committee, Environment Secretary Owen Paterson has warned the danger was not over.
"There will still be exceptionally high tides today and tomorrow and I would ask everybody to pay very close attention to advice from the Environment Agency and also to follow instructions from the police, local government and the emergency services, " he said.
Jason Wakeford, a spokesman for the Environment Agency, has said several thousand properties have been affected "in the biggest coastal event of the last 60 years".
"The worst effects were in darkness overnight so it is too soon to assess the overall picture but several thousand properties have been affected in the biggest coastal event of the last 60 years and the warnings we issued were in line with that risk, " he said.
In Suffolk, seawater swept through lower-lying parts of the central shopping area in the seaside town of Lowestoft late last night, although it had retreated by this morning.
However, it left behind soaked floors and ruined stock, leaving shop owners to salvage what they could before beginning the process of trying to reclaim the money they had lost.
Steve Clemmett, 63, the owner of the Lowestoft Carpet and Rug Company, located just a few hundred yards from the seafront, estimated that he had lost £15,000 to £20,000 worth of stock and samples.
The water reached more than 15 inches off the floor of his shop at its peak at about 10.30pm last night. It is the first time he has suffered flooding since moving in 12 years ago.
He said: "It went all the way through the shop right to the very back. We got all the customers' stuff out of the way up high, so it's OK.
"What we have lost is mostly remnants and samples, but also some stock."
Mr Clemmett criticised the local council for failing to provide sandbags for residents, meaning he had to drive 12 miles up the coast to Great Yarmouth in Norfolk to collect them.
He only managed to fit seven sandbags in his car, and believes it might have slowed the flood waters if he had been able to get more of them locally.
"There was no help from the council at all. For the rates we pay, you would expect more," he said.

^{Waves crash onto the beach after a storm surge in Hemsby, Norfolk. Photo: Reuters}
People in Southwold were surveying the damage for the floods this morning, but the tow was not as badly hit as first thought.
Huge waves continued to batter the pier, where high seas had pushed the beach huts into the centre of the car park.
Geoff Ladd, 64, who maintains the huts, said that he would get a crane down to put them in place, but not for another day or two as he was waiting for the high seas to pass.
“There is some damage, but not as much as expected,” he said as he surveyed the huts this morning.
“The sea defences have saved the town. But I think that the authorities have over reacted and frightened people. There was all this talk of 1953, but that was worse and we didn't have the sea defences then.
“The police were banging on doors telling people to get out. One woman told me that her husband was in London and she couldn't leave and he couldn't get back and so the warnings frightened her."