There needs to be a "complete
rethink" of the UK's flood defences following widespread flooding across
northern England, the Environment Agency says.
Deputy chief
executive David Rooke said better waterproofing of homes and improved
warning systems would be vital for tackling future weather extremes.Parts of Yorkshire, Lancashire and Greater Manchester are struggling with the aftermath of downpours that caused rivers to burst their banks.
The PM is visiting flood-hit areas.
David Cameron tweeted that he had met some of the military personnel "doing so much to help people hit by floods in York".
He also said the government was looking "very carefully at our flood prevention plans" to make sure the right amount of money was being spent in "the right places", and that everything possible was being done to help people.
The Environment Agency has 10 severe flood warnings, meaning danger to life, in place for north-east and north-west England, and more than 100 other flood alerts across England and Wales.
Monday will be drier than the weekend, but more heavy rain and wind is forecast for late Tuesday into Wednesday.
BBC Weather's Nick Miller says this next bout of bad weather has officially been named Storm Frank.
Mr Rooke told the BBC the UK was moving from a period of "known extremes" of weather to one of "unknown extremes" - something which a government review of flood defences would consider before reporting next summer.
Asked if the UK needed a new response to flooding, he said: "I think we will need to have that complete rethink and I think we will need to move from not just providing better defences - and we've got a £2.3bn programme to do that over the next six years - but also looking at increasing resilience."
This would mean "when properties do flood, that they have solid floors, waterproof plaster, more electrics up the wall - so that people can get into their houses and businesses more quickly".
The UK needed to "improve our flood warning systems" so people had more time to take action during flooding and lives could be saved, he added.
Many places in northern England have seen record river levels over the past 24 hours, including the River Aire in Leeds, and the rivers Calder and Ribble, affecting places such as Whalley, Hebden Bridge and Ribchester.
The River Ouse is now thought to have stabilised in York, where hundreds of people had to leave flooded homes following the torrential rain over Christmas.
York Council spokesman Charlie Croft said: "We have to say that we are still in the middle of a major incident, though tentative positive news is that the river may now have stopped rising at this point."
Rescue teams move through flood waters that have inundated homes on the Huntington Road, York
Extra soldiers have been deployed to aid emergency services, and about 200 unpaid mountain rescue volunteers from Wales, Cornwall and the Lake District have also been helping in the city.
In other developments:
- Flooding has affected phone lines in York - including the non-emergency police number 101 - and people are advised to call 01609 768 182 instead
- City of York Council says plans for further evacuations will not go ahead, but it has opened a second rest centre for residents
- More than 20 roads are closed in the centre of York
- In Leeds, 1,000 homes have been flooded
- Police say the flood operation in Greater Manchester has now turned into a "recovery" phase, with water levels falling
- More than 1,100 homes in Greater Manchester remain without power - including in Rochdale and Bury. Emergency generators are being used, but Electricity North West has urged people to switch off Christmas lights to save electricity
- Accountancy firm PwC says the cost of the flooding caused by Storms Eva and Desmond in December could exceed £1.5bn, with small business and insurance firms hit hardest
Downing Street said emergency financial assistance would be available to homes and businesses in Yorkshire and Lancashire.
They will have access to the support package announced earlier in the month for people affected by Storm Desmond in Cumbria.
Meanwhile, shadow communities secretary Jon Trickett called for a major programme of public works and an end to cuts to local authorities in order to deal with the flooding.
He said he did not want to get into "political argy-bargy" but stressed all parties needed to adapt to the "significant change" in the climate.
The Met Office has issued yellow (be aware) warnings for rain on Wednesday in areas of northern England, Wales and Northern Ireland, bringing the threat of further flooding.
Amber (be prepared) warnings for rain are in place for parts of Scotland on Wednesday too. There are currently no flood warnings in Scotland.
People can access information from council websites and the Environment Agency Floodline.
The agency is also operating a phone line - 0345 988 1188 - which will be staffed rather than offering recorded information.
5 December: Storm Desmond brings more than a month's rain to parts of Cumbria, leading to flooding in Carlisle and other areas12 December: River levels remain high and more than 70 flood warnings are issued amid more heavy rain
22 December: Communities in Cumbria flood again - some for the third time in less than a month
25 December: More than 100 flood alerts and warnings are issued across England and Wales as Storm Eva brings torrential rain
26 December: Residents in West Yorkshire and Lancashire are evacuated from their homes and flooding hits Leeds, Greater Manchester and York
27 December: Police in York advise hundreds of people to evacuate their homes as severe flood warnings remain in place in northern England
Live flood warnings from the Environment Agency and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency.
