Appleby Emergency Response Group
Jubilee Bridge in Appleby is impassable due to flooding
Several people have been rescued from homes and vehicles as heavy rain caused problems across a county.
Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service came to the aid of five people trapped by flood water in separate callouts.
Earlier, Cumbria Police temporarily shut a northbound section of the M6 motorway between junctions 41 and 42, while the A595 near Wigton and roads in Carlisle also faced closures.
Among the waterways covered by a number of Environment Agency flood warnings and alerts are the River Caldew in Carlisle and the River Eden in Appleby. Police urged motorists not to try and drive through flood water, and to take alternative routes.
A Carlisle Crown Court trial of a man accused of assaulting and injuring three police officers had to be abandoned because of flood disruption.
Three jurors were unable to attend and were discharged and a new trial date set for June 2026.
About 25 schools have also been forced to close because of flooding.
Widespread disruption
The fire service said it had been responding to calls since about 02:00 GMT, when the team rescued a person from floods at High Seaton.
Crews later took one person to hospital from a flooded house in Irthington.
A man was also rescued from van trapped in near Bolton New Houses, another from a car near Wetheral and two people were trapped in a car near Aspatria.
Police said they had received numerous reports of flooding, while Cumberland Council said the following roads had been shut:
A6071 Longtown Road, BramptonWreay Road at Low Hurst Motorway BridgeBarras Brow, Dalston, between Cardewlees Farm Junction and the A595 at CardewleesA69 Hayton, Lane End to Hayton village
The A596 outside the police station on Hall Brow, Workington, and the A595 outside Greenhill Hotel at Red Dial were closed earlier but have since reopened.
The council also said Friday’s Carlisle Market had been cancelled.
“This choice has been made with the safety of our visitors, traders, and contractors as our top priority,” the authority said.
BBC / Federica Bedendo
Flimby has been hit by heavy rain overnight
Meanwhile in Maryport, videos taken by resident Lynn Brodie showed a swollen River Ellen and a submerged allotment.
Ms Brodie said she had lived there for more than 25 years but “had never seen the allotments or Crown Park this bad before”.
In Wigton, one of the town’s biggest employers Futamura narrowly avoided being flooded in the early hours.
The business, which employs about 290 people making bio-degradable packaging was protected by its flood defences and the workforce – many of whom are volunteer firefighters.
The River Ellen has risen high in Maryport
NHS North Cumbria Integrated Care said some staff and patients were unable to reach appointments.
It said its sites were “still operating safely” and asked people who needed urgent care to call NHS 111 for advice.
In the village of Thursby, near Carlisle, people have been working to clear drains after rain flooded roads.
Radio Cumbria reporter Ollie Rawlinson said it was “like a river running through the village”.
Roads were submerged in Thursby
In Carlisle the following roads have been shut:
Kingmoor Road beneath Etterby BridgeViaduct Estate Road at the Castle Way endCaldew Riverside and West Walls car parks
Dalston Road outside the crematorium has reopened following an earlier closure.
National Rail said ScotRail, Avanti West Coast and Trans Pennine Express services were being impacted and speed restrictions were in place between Lockerbie and Oxenholme Lake District.
There are also no trains running between Whitehaven and Carlisle.
Kate Inchbold-Stevens
Kate Inchbold-Stevens said deep water in Great Corby “completely covered the road”
Kate Inchbold-Stevens was taking her son to school and got caught in the floods near Corby.
She said water “completely covered the road and was very deep”, while traffic was “backed up” in Brampton.
“I saw teachers from William Howard School with radios all along the diversion doing a really good job of informing traffic, bus drivers and kids which way to go, making sure people were safe, and kids could get to school.”
Westmorland and Furness Council
Flusco household waste recycling centre in Penrith has been closed
Westmorland and Furness Council said standing water was causing issues on the A6 at Plumpton.
It said the road from Plumpton heading west was closed because the River Petteril had burst its banks, while the B6413 has been shut at Lazonby Bridge because of similar issues with the River Eden.
Flusco household waste recycling centre in Penrith has also been closed.
Ch Supt Carl Patrick of Cumbria Police said the worst of the rain had cleared but some impact on travel would continue.
There was widespread flooding in the county last week which caused major disruption to travel, with more than 265 flooding and drainage issues were reported.
