National Highways admits A421 will be closed for “several days” to clear 60 million litres of flood water

National Highways has admitted the A421 “is likely to remain closed for a prolonged period that could amount to several days” after heavy rain left the parts of the road submerged in flood water over eight feet deep.

The road has been closed between the A6 and M1 J13 since Sunday (22 September). Three cars are reportedly under the water after their owners abandoned them. There are no reports of any injuries caused by the flooding.

It is estimated there are 60 million litres of water on the road. So far a fleet of 10 tankers working around the clock have managed to remove five million litres.

However, with a further Amber Met Office weather warning for heavy rain today (Thursday) until tomorrow, saying heavy rain is likely to cause flooding and transport disruption this evening and overnight, some of that work will be undone.

“By the end of today we expect to have removed more than five million litres of water – that’s the same amount as you’d find in two Olympic swimming pools.  

“The torrential weather experienced in this part of the country meant over a month’s rainfall fell in less than 48 hours. That overwhelmed the area and, for the first time we’ve experienced, flooded a nearby pumping station hampering our ability to deal [with] this.

“This is an absolute priority as we don’t want people’s journeys impacted by disruption and all our efforts are focused on resolving this and getting the road open as soon as it is safe to do so.

Bedfordshire Police have also commented that flooding in other areas of the Borough is having an impact on the efforts to remove floodwater from the A421.

In a post on their Facebook page, a spokesperson wrote, ‘A multi-agency plan to utilise specialist high volume pumps to clear the water quickly is being enacted.

‘However, following consultation with partner agencies, including the environment agency, we are unable to progress at this point in time due to water levels elsewhere.’

Mr Fellows from National Highways explained this further, “Given the ground conditions are so wet and we are having to transport the floodwater away from the immediate area, it’s important people realise the size of the task and this could take a number of days to resolve.

Both Bedfordshire Police and National Highways also asked people to stay away from the area.

“I understand that people are curious and want to visit the scene but I would kindly request that members of the public continue to support us by staying away from the area so our work to resolve this issue can continue to progress at pace,” added Mr Fellows.