GWENT escaped the worst of flooding predicted to hit parts of Newport and Monmouthshire this morning.

High tides were predicted to be similar to those experienced a month ago, but apart from the brief closure of Caerleon Road in St Julian’s and the main road through Tintern, Gwent appeared to escape the worst of the flooding. The next high tide in Newport will be at 8.26pm this evening.

On Friday the Environment Agency issued a flood warning for Newport, stating that a peak high tide level of 7.8-8.1 metres was expected on Saturday morning at 8:15 am. The high tide at Chepstow is 25 minutes later, and at Tintern 45 minutes later than at Newport.

Monmouthshire Council had crews on hand for the predicted tidal flooding at Tintern and issued sandbags as required.

They closed the road for 20 minutes either side of the high tide and have said they will continue to do this over the weekend.

The council also gritted roads last night as temperatures fell to zero and some higher routes had a slight powdering of snow.

A Monmouthshire council spokesman said: “There were no further problems reported in the county, but our people will be on hand throughout the weekend to deal with any issues caused by the predicted bad weather and high tides.”

On Friday January 3, the morning tide reached 8.01 metres at Newport, which saw the River Usk in the city full almost to the brim. On the same day in Tintern, the River Wye burst its banks after what some residents called the highest tide in 15 years.

Newport and Monmouthshire were among 15 Welsh coastal areas the agency was classing as medium flood risks on Friday, with another six in the south west of England, including Gloucestershire.

A medium risk is the second highest classification, and states that flooding is expected and people should be prepared and vigilant.

For the latest flooding information, call Floodline on 0845 988 1188 or visit www.environment-agency.gov.uk/homeandleisure/floods