Storm Goretti: West Sussex village no longer in red warning status
Multiple flood alerts were issued in West Sussex but have since been removed.
Sussex World reported on Thursday (January 8) thatflood alerts were in place for Littlehampton, Adur and Worthing, amid the arrival of Storm Goretti.
A more serious red warning was put in place for coastal areas of Climping, including Poole Place, stating: “Flooding is expected – act now.”
The aforementioned towns and villages remained under threat of flooding on Friday. Three alerts had also been issued for the Chichester district – as well as one for Mid Sussex and another for the area south of Horsham.
As of 4.30pm, only three alerts remained – including Climping, which was no longer on red alert.
An updated Environment Agency statement read: “Strong winds and large waves on Friday has led to minor flooding. Minor flooding is possible for two hours either side of Friday afternoon's tide at 15:45 on 09/01/2026.
"The shingle beach has been impacted by high energy waves from Storm Goretti.
"Minimal flood impacts are expected. A small amount of water could find its way behind the beach and may pond on nearby land and fields including at Climping Street Car Park and Mill Lane Saturday's tide at 04:00 10/01/2026 is forecast to be one cm lower (2.23 mAOD).
"Tides will continue to fall and flood risk should reduce. We are closely monitoring the situation We routinely check the condition of the beach at Climping. Consider activating any flood protection products you may have. Access could be restricted. Take care if visiting Climping beach.”
The alert has since been removed for Climping – and all other areas of West Sussex.
This included the coastal areas between West Wittering and Medmerry, including Bracklesham Drive, caravan parks, West Sands, Selsey Country Club and Ferry Farm.
Also under threat temporarily was the River Adur and its tributaries from Burgess Hill to Henfield.
There were also multiple alerts and warning across East Sussex, including Pevensey, Barcombe Mills, Cuckemere, and Hastings.
On Sunday afternoon, alerts remain in place for the Upper Ouse, River Uck and Combe Haven.
AA Traffic News reported that Barcombe Mills Road was ‘just passable’ on Friday, due to flooding from High Street to the A26.
Storm Goretti’s influence waned through Friday but further snow and ice warnings were issued for the weekend, with ‘disruption likely for much of Scotland and northern England on Sunday’.
The weather experts added: “Storm Goretti has been an impactful weather system, with significant disruption and impacts reported so far. A peak gust of 99mph was reported at St Marys on the Isles of Scilly, the highest here since 1991.
“Accumulations of snow have also been reported, 15cm has been recorded at Lake Vyrnwy in Powys, 7cm at Preston Montford in Shropshire and 7cm at Nottingham. Wider accumulations have been recorded, as well as some higher unofficial totals from non-Met Office observations. Notable snow accumulations continue in Scotland, with 27cm at Altnaharra in Sutherland, 26cm at Loch Glascarnoch and 22cm at Durris in Kincardineshire. The lowest temperature recorded overnight was -13.3°C at Braemar, Aberdeenshire.”