Hundreds rescued from floods in Britain

LONDON - Emergency services in England have rescued hundreds of people from their houses after a local river burst its banks, swamping Carlisle with its worst floods for 40 years and cutting electricity from 76,000 homes.

"The whole of the city is without power," a Cumbria Police spokesman said after floodwater knocked out the northwestern city's main electricity sub-station.

Royal Air Force helicopters were called in to airlift families from the tops of farmhouses and waterlogged vehicles.

The flooding was so extensive in Carlisle's low-lying centre that police appealed for anyone with a boat to help in rescues.

The floods came as gales of up to 120 miles an hour and heavy rain battered many parts of Britain.

The Environment Agency issued 84 flood warnings across the country, accidents forced the closure of sections of three major motorways and the Highways Agency urged people not to drive unless it was absolutely necessary.

One motorway was closed after 25 trucks were blown over by the strong winds, the agency said.

A passenger ferry carrying 100 people ran aground on Scotland's west coast, and officials said tug boats would not be able to reach the stricken ship until Sunday because of the weather.

None of the passengers or crew was injured when the P & O Highlander hit a sandbank at Cairnryan.

"It's far safer to keep the passengers on board," P&O Irish Sea Managing Director Terry Cairns told BBC television.

"We had a bit of a struggle to find two tugs, but we've got them now. They'll be on their way at midnight," he said.

- REUTERS