Woman in her 80s is found dead at home in East Midlands after Storm Babet sparked flash floods – bringing death toll to nine

• Derbyshire police say the death is ‘believed to be related to the flooding’ 
• READ MORE: Millions facing disruption and nine dead after Storm Babet passes

A woman in her 80s has been found dead at a home in Chesterfield after Storm Babet devastated the area – taking the death toll from recent bad weather to nine.

Derbyshire Police say they were called out to a property in Tapton Terrace at 10.35am on Saturday – and while investigations are at an early stage, they believe her death is related to flooding in area.

In a statement issued on Sunday morning, Derbyshire Police said: ‘An investigation has been launched after the body of a woman was found at a property in Chesterfield.

‘Derbyshire Constabulary were called just after 10.35am on Saturday 21 October to the sudden death of a woman in Tapton Terrace, Chesterfield.

‘Officers, along with colleagues from Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service and from East Midlands Ambulance Service, arrived at the property and found a woman, aged in her 80s, inside the flat.’

Flooding devastates the Derbyshire town of Chesterfield, where a woman in her 80s was found dead on Saturday

Streets in Chesterfield have been washed out while fire and rescue bosses have declared a ‘major incident’ amid heavy rains and widespread floods

A local in Chesterfield gets a piggyback from a rescue worker as he is carried out of a flood-stricken street

Vehicles were abandoned on Derby Road in Chesterfield early on Saturday amid rising water levels

The force added: ‘Investigations are continuing into the cause and circumstances surrounding her death, but it is believed it is related to the flooding seen in the Chesterfield area.’

Fire and rescue bosses in Derbyshire had declared a ‘major incident’ across the county after flood waters rose and washed out entire communities.

At least 400 homes in Chesterfield, between Derby and Sheffield, were deluged as of Saturday, according to local MP Toby Perkins. 

Her death is believed to be the ninth linked to Storm Babet, which arrived in the UK late on Wednesday causing chaos on the roads, railways and in local communities which have been devastated by flood waters.

In Scotland, a 57-year-old woman was swept to her death in the Glen Esk valley in Angus on Thursday; a 56-year-old man was killed by a falling tree close to nearby Forfar later the same day; and a man in his 60s was swept away by flood waters in Shropshire on Friday.

Elsewhere, police are said to be treating a crash in Halifax that killed a 19-year-old man and a pile-up on the M4 that killed two women, both on Friday, as being related to the inclement weather conditions. 

And a man and a woman were killed after their car plunged from a bridge near Skipton, North Yorkshire, on Saturday afternoon; officers have not stated whether the car left the bridge as a result of the stormy winds and heavy rain.

A search is also under way in Aberdeenshire after police received a report of a man trapped in a vehicle in floodwater.

This is a breaking news story – more to follow. 

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