Those who live in this area will have heard that the A32, a trunk road, is closed at Farringdon near Alton, and the A272 at Bramdean near Winchester. Here's the reason - the water is 6 inches to a foot deep in each case.

First, Bramdean

Nearby the normal source of the Itchen, which has been making headlines as it floods Winchester, is to be found as a small a small pond behind the trees on the left. Instead, there's already a hearty stream at this point - look behind the hedge on the right.

Farringdon is probably worse hit; this field is dry in a normal winter

And the A32 which is the main street

I suspect the new houses in the next picture are the ones I read about (in the 1990s??), which were built but then flooded because no-one's memory stretched back far enough to remember that a winterbourne might start flowing. If so, they've contributed to the problem because the water could once have escaped into fields where the houses are now. The postman is climbing over a wall of sandbags; there's a 24/7 pumping operation going on.

And finally, Southern Water, with exquisite timing, notifying everyone in the district about water-saving measures (this at Cheriton, just down from the source of the Itchen above)

That's still a lot of water around, not nice for the residents

They'll be images for the history  books  ....

Excellent photographs.

One really have to appreciate that sense of irony in the last photo.

Cheryl used to use that road to get to a customer. Probably good that she left that one!

Up here, we call the water in those pictures 'puddles'

Back to square one in these parts, fields flooded and rivers have a tad too much water in