Storm Franklin - emergency services warn Lincolnshire residents about flooding and trees, fences and a yoga ball among the obstacles blown into region's roads

Lincolnshire Police reported yesterday afternoon they were getting a number of reports of items blown into roads and causing hazards.

They said via social media: "So far we have had calls about trees, fences and a yoga ball! Please drive with care."

Later they went on to report the one lane of the A17 Sleaford bypass closed between Holdingham and Bone Mill Junction due to flooding, a tree blocking half the A15 at Folkingham, and the road flooded and closed at Chapel Street, Ruskington after the torrential rain and 60mph winds on Sunday.

This morning they warned: "The winds are still strong and a fallen tree could be just round the next bend, so please take care."

Overnight the Environment Agency said river levels continued to rise across parts of the Midlands into the night. "We’ve a number of flood warnings and alerts in force."

This included a Flood Alert for the River Witham from Claypole to Lincoln through North Kesteven after heavy rainfall in the area causing the Witham level to rise, leading to flooding of low lying land and roads close to the river on Sunday evening.

They stated: "We expect the river to remain high throughout the next 24 hours. Our forecasts indicate that flooding to properties isn't likely and therefore flood warnings are not expected to be issued. We are constantly monitoring river levels, and have staff in the field checking for blockages and clearing weed screens. Please avoid using low lying footpaths near local watercourses and plan driving routes to avoid low lying roads near rivers, which may be flooded."

Commenting on the previous Storm Eunice which hit the county on Friday they said that officers and other emergency services were kept extremely busy for 24 hours, with police responding to 135 incidents during Friday afternoon and evening.

Incidents mainly related to downed trees and road closures caused by the extremely high winds. "Thankfully, none of these are believed to have caused any serious injury. We want to say a big thank you for their hard work to our partners who put on extra resourcesto help keep our county safe and minimise disruption, and to all our officers and staff, who saw an almost 23 per cent increase in the number of incidents," said a police spokesman.