MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Floods in England: two dead and short on drinking water

Two people died on Thursday and 140.000 household in Gloucestershire remain without drinking water raising health and sanitation fears following several days of extensive flooding in central and west England caused by the wettest June and July on record in the UK.

Bramwell Lane, 64, and son Chris, who was in his 20s, may have been overcome by fumes while using a petrol-powered pump at the Tewkesbury club, according to the fire service which warned about the risks of using certain pumps indoors. Meanwhile, 140,000 households in Gloucestershire remain without water after a treatment plant flooded. Severn Trent Water says the Army is helping to plan the refilling of mobile street dispensers amid complaints that some have been running dry. The police, meanwhile, said there had been some selfish behavior among some residents trying to find water. Earlier the director of Severn Trent Water, David Wickens, said it had proved difficult to navigate the large tankers used to refill mobile dispensers through smaller streets, and added there was a shortage of tanker drivers. Gloucestershire Police were called to Tewkesbury Rugby Club after it was reported that two people pumping water there could not be contacted. Members of the emergency services entered the building and found club treasurer Mr Lane and his son dead at the scene. The Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service warned that petrol pumps should always remain outside. "We have a team of crews who can pump out properties, so there is no need to take any unnecessary risks" "There are also safety issues where people's electricity supply has been affected by flood water - please do not reconnect power supplies until they have been checked out by a professional electrician." Severn Trent Water - which says it could take a week to restore tap water to some homes in Gloucestershire - says some 10,000 homes in the Tewkesbury area should have mains water for washing and flushing toilets by Thursday night. It has warned residents they must not drink the water - even if they have boiled it - but can use it for baths, showers and flushing toilets. Environment Secretary Hilary Benn said the total number of flooded properties could eventually reach 15,000. But along the River Thames in Oxfordshire and Berkshire, fears of more flooding have eased after levels appeared to have stabilized overnight on Wednesday. However, the Environment Agency still has three severe flood warnings in place - two on the Thames around Oxford, and one on the Ock, near Abingdon, Oxfordshire.