Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service said it had been "extremely busy" around recent yellow and amber weather warnings, giving flooding advice to over 40 callers and attending just shy of 30 incidents in the last 24 to 48 hours. The service published its update on 28 January 2026.
Many of the incidents attended involved rescuing people from their cars or assisting with property flooding1. The service said further disruption from bad weather and flooding was due over the next day1.
"please make sure that you check the roads before you travel and never drive through standing flood water"
The service added that driving through standing flood water "can end up being an expensive trip but you're also putting yourself in unnecessary danger"1. It pointed readers to its driving in adverse weather page for further tips1.
The service's update did not give locations for the individual incidents, the number of people rescued, or the number of properties affected. Those details have not been reported1. The update also did not state which areas of Dorset and Wiltshire the yellow and amber warnings covered, or the dates and times of the warnings themselves; the Met Office warning detail is not included in the service's statement1.
Why it matters for households
The service's figures cover a single 24 to 48 hour period across Dorset and Wiltshire, and it expects further disruption over the following day1. Households in the two counties are therefore within the area the service has been responding in, although the statement does not break the incidents down by location1.
The service's advice centres on travel: it asks people to check the roads before travelling and never to drive through standing flood water1. It notes that many of the incidents it attended involved rescuing people from their cars1. For households, the practical points are the difference between the three levels of flood warning and what to do when one is issued, which are set out in the guides to flood alerts, flood warnings and severe flood warnings and the checklist when a flood warning is issued. The wider household guide to flooding covers preparing a property and what to do during and after a flood, and the flooding hub collects the related pages.
What happens next
The service said further disruption from bad weather and flooding was due over the next day from the date of its statement, 28 January 20261. No further update, incident totals or warning details for the following period have been reported1.
Flood Alerts and Flood Warnings
Flood Warning Checklist
