Racing cancelled at Exeter due to waterlogged course

A plethora of jump racing stars were set to line up in the re-routed Levy Board Peterborough Chase, which was due to take place at Exeter Racecourse on Thursday (Dec 20th), but with yet more heavy rain affecting parts of the region, the day's racing has had to be abandoned due to a waterlogged racecourse.

The Met Office says up to 60mm of rain will fall in some areas. This additional rainfall, is likely to affect other parts of the county with property flooding from rivers and surface water as well as disruption to road and rail networks.

People are being urged to keep up to date with the latest information from the Environment Agency website, sign up to free flood warnings, check their route for disruption before travelling, and not to drive or walk through floodwater.

Devon County Council reported landslips, including one on the A379 Holcombe towards Dawlish.

Meanwhile racing was abandoned at Exeter Racecourse due to waterlogged ground.

More heavy rain is also forecast from Saturday into Sunday. This morning, flooding was reported on the B3180 in both directions in Woodbury at the B3179 junction.

Councillor Stuart Hughes, Devon County Council’s Cabinet Member for Highways and Transportation, said: “We owe a debt of gratitude to our highways teams who are working extremely hard to monitor the situation and will be endeavouring to keep vulnerable culverts clear. We’ve already had teams out this week still clearing up from damage caused by the storms in November so obviously we are concerned about the predicted rainfall.

“Clearly we are advising residents in areas previously affected by flooding to be prepared for a similar scenario and be alert to the potential of surface water and residual flooding particularly in areas where the ground is already saturated.”

“I would advise everyone to be cautious when travelling especially in the dark. In fact, think about your journey, do you really need to get out on the road? There were some cases in November of motorists not only driving through flood water but going too fast so our advice is not to drive through flood water at all.

"There are likely to be many potholes underneath surface water which present a hidden danger so drivers need to be aware of those and also of breaking distances. Also stay up to date with weather and flood related news from the Environment Agency and Met Office. And listen to local radio stations for weather updates.”