Heavy rain, snow showers and wind gusting at up to 80mph swept across the country early on Wednesday.

The second day of racing at Cheltenham was called off after strong winds damaged temporary buildings, making the course unsafe for the 55,000 spectators due to watch the races.

"We cannot guarantee the safety of the customers but the good news is we can stage all the races now over the next two days," said Cheltenham Managing Director Edward Gillespie.

Several lorries overturned in the early hours on the Thelwall Viaduct on the M6 west of Manchester, police said. None of the drivers was injured.

Strong winds closed the Runcorn-Widnes bridge in Cheshire to high-sided vehicles. There were long delays on roads across the northwest, the Highways Agency said.

In Manchester, a woman was taken to hospital after a lamppost fell on her car. She suffered whiplash and cuts and bruises.

In East Sussex, a tree fell onto an empty coach on the A26. The driver was unhurt.

Rail passengers faced delays after speed limits were imposed on the West Coast Main Line north of Rugby, Warwickshire, and on the East Coast Main Line north of Stevenage, Hertfordshire.

There were also severe delays on cross-Channel ferries and services were cancelled on Irish sea routes.

The Environment Agency had four flood warnings and 25 flood watch warnings in place.

On Monday, a storm brought down trees and power lines in southern England and Wales after sweeping in from the Atlantic.

(Writing by Peter Griffiths; editing by Steve Addison)

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12Mar08 10:08 GMT Source RTRS Reuters News Categories: ELG EUROPE GB IDS/TEXT INTEREST/ELE INTEREST/RWS INTEREST/UKI INTEREST/UKR PKG/RTRWD RRL WEA WEU MST/B/WTH MST/G/ENV MST/I MST/I/ELC MST/I/IDD MST/I/RAI MST/I/SHP MST/L/EN MST/N MST/R/EUR MST/R/G7 MST/R/GB MST/R/WEU TGT/RON

REUTERS

Thawing Ice Threatens China Yellow River Flood

[HQTKGNL]

BEIJING - China's northern region of Inner Mongolia is on high alert against a severe flood threat caused by ice blocking the Yellow River during the spring thaw, state media said.

More than 70,000 people in the region were on standby for rescue and disaster relief efforts along the frozen 720-km (450-mile) stretch of China's second longest river, known as "China's sorrow" for its frequent flooding.

"The People's Liberation Army's air force and artillery troops have also joined the flood prevention operation," Xinhua news agency said. "Blasting will be carried out if there are any big ice blockages on the river."

Sections of the river freeze and thaw at different times. If a blockage persists, water levels may rise and cause flooding and dam bursts, threatening lives and property. The ice-run phenomenon happens at the start of winter and spring.

The river's ice flood was the heaviest in 40 years, Xinhua said.

"Low-quality dams in certain sections have worsened the situation," it said.

The Yellow River in Inner Mongolia began to melt on Tuesday after a full thawing of the upper stretch in neighbouring Ningxia autonomous region.

The 5,464-km Yellow River originates in Qinghai province in the northwest and flows through Gansu, Ningxia, Inner Mongolia, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Henan and Shandong before emptying into the Bohai Sea.