Met Office forecasters today issued an early warning of more severe weather which it said was likely to result in further disruption across England and Wales.

An area of rain is forecast to push across central and southern parts of the UK on Thursday night and into Friday with the possibility of up to 25 mm of rain, especially across parts of Wales, the Midlands and Northern England.

"However our main concern is over another active system which will bring rain across many parts of the UK on Saturday and Sunday with the risk of up to 50 mm of rain," said the Met Office, in a statement.

"This further rainfall, on top of what has already been a record breaking wet June for some, will only add to the problems being faced across parts of England and Wales. The hardest hit areas are likely to see further significant rainfall only exacerbating the flooding which has already occurred."

The weather system that drenched much of Britain with up to 100 mm (4 in) of rain in 24 hours earlier this week was described by the Met Office as a once-in-a-century event.

The warning of fresh deluges to come was issued as engineers who have been working to prevent the collapse of the Ulley dam, near Rotherham, said that the danger had reduced overnight but was not over.

Yesterday, around 700 people in villages downstream of the dam were evacuated from their homes after areas of weakness appeared. Emergency workers used heavy pumps through the night to reduce water levels while engineers tried to rebuild parts of the dam wall.

A busy stretch of the M1 downstream of the dam remained shut today, between junctions 32 and 35 northbound and junctions 32 and 36 southbound, causing 15-mile tailbacks. Police and other agencies were meeting to decide whether the motorway can reopen, but urged people not to travel in the area unless it was essential.

As 17 huge pumps sucked 11 million gallons of water an hour out of the swollen Ulley Reservoir, almost 100 people from the downstream villages of Treeton and Whiston spent the night at makeshift rest centres in two schools and a leisure centre. Hundreds of others stayed with relatives or friends.

Even without a major damburst, parts of Treeton and most of Catcliffe were under several feet of water yesterday. Bemused residents watched as levels rose almost to the height of telephone boxes and caravans bobbed up and down the streets like rubber ducks in a bath.

Today, both areas were still badly affected although water levels appeared to have fallen by about two or three feet overnight. A Rotherham Council spokesman said: "The risk of a major breach remains significant but the situation is currently stable."

But the council’s strategic director Adam Wilkinson said the risk was reducing, as the water level in the reservoir had dropped by about half a metre (19 inches) since the pumping began. Engineers are aiming for a two-metre (6ft 6in) drop to reduce pressure on the dam walls.

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