M40 service station closed due to flooding

A motorway service station has been closed due to flooding overnight in Warwickshire, while flood alerts are in place for two rivers.

The Welcome Break services near Warwick, on the M40 northbound between junctions 12 and 13, has been shut since Saturday night and remained closed on Sunday, the National Highways service said.

A section of the A46 near Stratford-upon-Avon was also shut in both directions for several hours but reopened at about 15:00 GMT after the flooding was cleared, the highways service said.

The Environment Agency has issued flood alerts for sections of the River Leam and the River Itchen, saying this was due to "localised heavy rain" overnight.

Areas close to the River Leam between Grandborough and Leamington were at risk, with a possibility of flooding in low-lying roads and farmland until the early hours of Monday, the alert said.

Areas around the River Itchen between Southam and Marton were also at risk.

Flood alerts, which indicate that flooding is possible, are less serious than flood warnings, which indicate that such incidents are expected.

The affected section of the A46 runs from the Bishopton roundabout to the junction with the A439.

National Highways said its contractors had been working overnight to clear the water from the road, which was flowing from a nearby field, and emergency services had also attended the scene.

On Saturday night the highways service had posted a weather warning on X, and asked drivers to be careful due to "a band of heavy rain moving across the country".

The Welcome Break services on the southbound side of the M40 near Warwick were also closed on Saturday night due to flooding but later re-opened.

Follow BBC Coventry & Warwickshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.