More than 100 flood warnings have been put in place across the UK today as millions are expected to travel for Christmas.
Drivers have been warned to expect long tailbacks and delays on busy roads, such as the M1, M5, M6 and M25, while rail passengers have been advised to plan ahead due to engineering works and strikes.
On Friday, many travellers suffered chaos on one of the busiest days of the winter after the London-Gatwick-Brighton main railway line was closed near Gatwick airport due to flooding.
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The Environment Agency has issued more than 100 flood warnings for the UK, mainly in England, on one of the busiest travel weekends of the year.
There are also 252 flood alerts in place, meaning flooding is possible and people should be prepared to take action.
You can find the latest flood warning updates throughout the day here.
But for now, here's how the map of England looked this morning…
The Met Office has also issued warnings for fog and rain in Northern Ireland and the South respectively.
The warning for heavy rain is expected to be in place until 12pm tomorrow, while the fog warning should clear before midday today.
Our correspondent Simon Calder has the full story on the travel chaos from last night, when flooding caused trains across the country to be cancelled or delayed.
He spoke to stranded commuters at Victoria station in London yesterday.
The South East's Environment Agency is warning drivers to stay away from floodwater today and this picture from Sergeant Richard Lewington in Colchester shows why.
Highways England has warned there are long delays on the M25 anti-clockwise this morning after a lane closure “due to a vehicle on its side in the carriageway”.
A Father Christmas had to be rescued yesterday after his car broke down in floodwater, according to the BNPS agency.
He had reportedly been handing out presents at a nearby school when his car, a blue Mercedes, got stuck in a 1ft deep flood near Shaftesbury, Dorset.
PC Matt Weldon, the officer who helped rescue him, told the agency: “Santa was on the way home from a local school where he'd been giving out presents. It was a mechanical breakdown at a really bad time.”
Mr Weldon also posted a picture of the incident on social media.
Away from the South, the rest of the UK is expected to see a mixture of showers with some sunny spells this afternoon and temperatures between 6C and 9C.
Here’s how things are looking in Surrey, where water levels on the River Wey are very high this morning (Video via BBC reporter Adrian Harms).
The Met Office have released a short video showing the system that is bringing unsettled weather to the UK this weekend.
Forecasters have predicted “damaging winds” and heavy rain could be possible later, with conditions improving on Sunday.
Our correspondent Simon Calder has produced a detailed guide to help anyone travelling by rail, road, ferry and air this weekend avoid a chaotic journey.
You can read his advice below:
The flood outlook from the Environment Agency has improved marginally since earlier this morning.
At 12.20am, there were 95 flood warnings in place, with 246 flood alerts issued.
You can follow live updates on the warnings here.
That's all from The Independent's rolling coverage this morning.
For more information on this weekend’s Christmas travel conditions, you can read Simon Calder’s piece for all the details on the “midwinter misery”.
