Image copyright Derbyshire Police A woman swept to her death by a flooded river was Derbyshire’s former High Sherriff Annie Hall , *** have said.
Her body was pulled from the River Derwent near Matlock on Friday, as persistent rain caused floods acrossYorkshire and the Midlands.
Derbyshire Chief Constable Peter Goodman said he was “shocked and deeply saddened” by the death of his friend.
Seven severe flood warnings – deemed a threat to life – remain in place on the River Don in South Yorkshire.
Flooding has caused evacuations and travel disruption, with trains still not running in parts of the East Midlands.
In a statement, Mrs Hall’s family said: “We are in great shock and grieving.”
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Services are cancelled on the Matlock-Derby-Nottingham route and diversions are in place between Derby and Chesterfield, adding about 30 minutes to journeys.
South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue said it had declared a major incident on Friday night and firefighters had rescued more than 40 people from the Fishlake area, near Doncaster.
Deputy Chief Fire Officer Alex Johnson advised people to “keep themselves safe, help each other and don’t drive into flood water.”
Residents from 12 homes in Mansfield , Nottinghamshire, are still unable to return home after a mudslide on Thursday led to 35 properties being evacuated.
In Derby city center, officials considered a city-wide evacuation as authorities saw the River Derwent swell to record levels of 3. (m) 11 ft).
The bus station was temporarily evacuated on Friday evening, and some major roads remain flooded on Saturday morning.
The River Don, which flows through Sheffield, Rotherham and Doncaster, hit its highest recorded level at just over 6.3m (21 ft), higher than it was in 2007 when it also flooded .
People continued to be rescued from flood-hit towns and cities on Friday.
One man told the BBC he carried children from his gym in Rotherham, wading through water that had submerged the streets outside.
“The whole of the gym was completely flooded in water,” said Neil Wilson.
“We had to wade through water to get children to the cars so they could get home with their parents.
“The way the car park is it’s a bit deeper, so when we were carrying kids to the car it was coming up above our knees . “
Flooding has caused disruption in the region since Thursday evening,when dozens of shoppers were left stranded in the Meadowhall Shopping Centerafter torrential downpours flooded the city’s streets.
On Friday Prime Minister Boris Johnson visited Matlock, close to where flooding victim Annie Hall died .
He said the town could expect “extra help from the government”.
Labor leader Jeremy Corbyn will visit areas of South Yorkshire which have been affected by flooding on Saturday.
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