North West: 2026-27 El Niño preparation
In an emergency, or if life is at risk, call 999 (or 112). Follow the advice of your local council, the emergency services and official flood and weather warnings. They override this checklist.
Download the printable checklist (PDF)
Top 10 actions
- The service describes area-level flood risk and management options; it does not predict whether an individual property will flood
- Messages cover flooding from rivers, the sea or groundwater depending on your area; you cannot get flood warnings for surface water flooding (flash flooding).
- Switch off electricity at the fuse box and water/gas at the mains if flooded and safe to do so
- Official river, sea and groundwater flood warnings; no warnings for surface water
- Weather warnings (e.g. wind) with app and email alerts from the Met Office
- Used for life-threatening emergencies; sounds even on silent
- Carlisle, Keswick, Cockermouth
- Kendal, Appleby, Eden
- Lancashire County Council may make small self-collected supplies available at selected depots under its named-storm policy; availability is not guaranteed
- Greater Manchester Resilience Forum flood preparation and response guidance for the city region's 10 districts
Official live tools and local help
- Sign up for Floodline warnings: call 0345 988 1188 (24h; textphone 0345 602 6340) or online
- Check live flood alerts and warnings for your area
- Subscribe to Met Office email warnings and use the app
- Keep phone Emergency Alerts on; no sign-up needed
- Buy a battery or wind-up radio with spare batteries and a power bank
- Bookmark Cumbria Prepared for local emergency preparation, response, recovery and contact information
- Cumberland: bookmark the council's flooding page and use it to report flooding
- Westmorland and Furness Council: preparing for flooding and community resilience groups
- Bookmark Lancashire flood advice; obtain protection in advance because any council sandbag provision is limited and conditional
- Greater Manchester: bookmark the GMCA flooding advice page
- Environment Agency 03708 506 506 (Mon-Fri 8am-6pm)
- British Red Cross preparedness guidance
- If you or someone else is in immediate danger in a flood call 999; Floodline 0345 988 1188 (24 hours) for flood warnings and advice
- Learn what Met Office warning colours mean: yellow = read the warning to see which weather it covers; amber = possible travel delays, road and rail closures, power cuts and risk to life and property; red = dangerous weather, risk to life, take action now
- Learn the three England flood warning levels: flood alert = flooding is possible; flood warning = flooding is expected; severe flood warning = risk to life and significant disruption. Check your area at gov.uk/check-flooding or call Floodline 0345 988 1188
- Salford: bookmark the council's Emergencies page for emergency council contacts and major-incident planning information
Water and food
- Power cuts and flooding can interrupt supply; British Red Cross home kit specifies 3 days of water
- Cooking may be impossible in a power cut; Red Cross kit lists ready-to-eat food and tin opener
- FSA estimates a closed fridge stays cold for up to 4 hours; a full freezer stays frozen for up to 48 hours or 24 hours if half full. Refrigerated perishables reaching 8°C or above need the FSA four-hour handling rule
- Red Cross: about 50% of UK food is imported, so weather abroad may add pressure on supply and prices; the size of the effect is uncertain
- gov.uk after-flood advice
- Floodwater can contaminate food. If a fridge or freezer contacted floodwater, discard its food and do not restart the appliance until checked safe; use separate FSA guidance for power cuts
Power, heat and light
- Torches are safer than candles in power cuts (fire risk)
- Carbon monoxide has no smell; faulty or poorly maintained fuel-burning appliances can produce it
- NHS lists generators, barbecues and engines running in enclosed spaces as carbon monoxide sources. If you smell gas or a CO alarm sounds, call the Gas Emergency line on 0800 111 999 (free, 24 hours).
- Power cuts can stop heating; government advice recommends layered clothing and keeping frequently used rooms at least 18°C
- Red Cross power-cut page: write down important phone numbers including 105 and keep a paper copy in case your phone battery runs out; gov.uk help-during-flood: report a power cut on 105, calls are free.
- NHS 111 advises on suspected symptoms. If a gas appliance may be leaking carbon monoxide, call the Gas Emergency line on 0800 111 999 (free, 24 hours).
Flood and storm protection
- The service describes area-level flood risk and management options; it does not predict whether an individual property will flood
- Official checklists for what to do before, during and after a flood
- Council sandbag availability is not guaranteed; Westmorland and Furness identifies gel flood sacks and property-level measures as preparation options
- Cuts water entering through drains and walls; listed on gov.uk protect-your-property
- Cumberland Council: there is a large network of drains and gullies across Cumbria, which sometimes become blocked and flood the road; report online.
- Greater Manchester Resilience: storms can cause power cuts, fallen trees and travel disruption. The Met Office 3-month outlook (26 Oct 2026) says windy weather and storms are more likely than usual this winter; El Niño alone does not decide the weather.
- Messages cover flooding from rivers, the sea or groundwater depending on your area; you cannot get flood warnings for surface water flooding (flash flooding).
- Floodwater can be deeper than it looks and can hide open manholes, sharp objects and sewage. If you reach a flooded road, turn around and find another route. Driving through floodwater is the number one cause of death in floods.
- Be Ready: not evacuating or delaying evacuation can put your life at risk; pack a grab bag of essentials in advance
Home preparation
- Photos support insurance claims
- Switch off electricity at the fuse box and water/gas at the mains if flooded and safe to do so
- Reduces loss in ground-floor flooding
- Fire risk rises with improvised heating and lighting in power cuts; fire and rescue services advise testing by pressing the test button every month
- gov.uk after-flood and help-during-flood advice
- UKHSA flooding-and-health advice: exhaust gases contain carbon monoxide; floodwater can carry sewage
- Be Ready: slips, falls and car accidents rise on icy surfaces; the Met Office says cold spells remain possible later this winter
Documents
- Red Cross kit lists copies of important documents in a waterproof bag
- Red Cross flood guidance
- Lets you claim and get care without a phone
- GRO provides replacement certificates; HM Passport Office requires lost or stolen passports to be cancelled before replacement and identifies water staining as damage
Children
- Red Cross lists baby supplies; gov.uk advises ready-made formula because you may not be able to boil water or sterilise bottles
- Red Cross lists baby supplies; gov.uk advises ready-made formula because you may not be able to boil water or sterilise bottles
- NHS preparation requires freshly boiled water remaining at least 70°C when mixed with powder; FSA power-cut advice identifies ready-to-use formula as an option if water cannot be boiled
- Official advice for family plans
- Red Cross flood advice
- Disruption and displacement affect children and adults; NHS has a section for children, teenagers and parents, YoungMinds has a parents helpline, UKHSA lists Samaritans
Older, disabled and medical needs
- Gets support in a power cut; registering through your network operator via thepsr.co.uk shares your details with your gas and water providers; check eligibility there
- Suppliers and network operators keep separate registers; contact each
- Free Priority Services give extra support so the company can respond to specific needs
- Individual equipment and medicine instructions determine safe backup arrangements; the NHS trust advises contacting a pharmacy or manufacturer after a power cut or fridge breakdown; Red Cross kit lists fully charged power banks for a power cut
- Government cold-weather advice recommends checking on people at higher risk; Environment Agency guidance allows warnings to be sent on your behalf
- Follow each medicine's storage leaflet. Some in-use insulin pens can stay at room temperature for up to 4 weeks, but not all insulins: check yours.
Pets
- Red Cross kit and El Niño page
- Pets can be trapped by rising water
- El Niño page says plan for pets
Alerts and communication
- Official river, sea and groundwater flood warnings; no warnings for surface water
- Official live flood alerts and warnings for England
- Weather warnings (e.g. wind) with app and email alerts from the Met Office
- Used for life-threatening emergencies; sounds even on silent
- Radio gives updates when phones or internet fail
- Cumbria Local Resilience Forum provides multi-agency preparedness information and links to official weather and flood warnings
- Met Office: yellow warnings cover a range of situations so read the content; amber means increased likelihood of impacts that could disrupt plans; red means dangerous weather is expected and you should act now
- Environment Agency issues 3 levels in England; severe flood warnings can be issued before, during or after flooding; know which one needs action now
Money and insurance
- Check before the season; renters check landlord policy
- Eligibility has several conditions and differs between buildings and individual contents cover, including flats. Eligible claims with Build Back Better participating insurers may include up to £10,000 for resilience measures during repairs
- Supports insurance applications
- Protects your claim
- Cards and cash machines can fail in power cuts
- Eligible households may receive help with winter energy bills; Cold Weather Payments depend on qualifying benefits and recorded or forecast temperatures averaging 0°C or below for seven consecutive days
- Ofgem: the cap rose 4% to £1,723 a year for a typical dual-fuel Direct Debit home from 1 October 2026; suppliers should set up manageable payments and point you to helpKey date: Ofgem announces the January to March 2027 price cap on 25 Nov 2026. source
Local help
- Carlisle, Keswick, Cockermouth
- Kendal, Appleby, Eden
- Lancashire County Council may make small self-collected supplies available at selected depots under its named-storm policy; availability is not guaranteed
- Greater Manchester Resilience Forum flood preparation and response guidance for the city region's 10 districts
- Cumbria Prepared lists these
- Non-emergency
- Practical guidance on kits and plans
- gov.uk help during a flood
- The council page provides office-hours and out-of-hours emergency contacts and explains its emergency management plan