Joe Bonamassa

The moment the two surfers were nearly swept from the harbour wall by the 30ft wave at Porthleven in Cornwall yesterday

Severe flood warnings subside as Britain slowly returns to normal

Temperatures warm up in England, with highs of 10C

55 feared dead after storms in Europe, with 45 killed in France

This is the moment two thrill-seeking surfers escaped a freak 30ft wave as it smashed into the shore.

The two men were caught on camera as they stood on a promenade and spent several minutes dodging waves as they battered the habour wall.

But one large 30ft breaker crashed over their heads and the pair were nearly dragged into the sea at Porthleven in Cornwall.

Amazingly, both were unhurt and managed to scurry away to safety following the incident yesterday afternoon.

The terrifying stunt has prompted coastguards to issue a warning as Britain is lashed by gales and massive sea swells.

Unperturbed, the two men returned without their surfboards to play 'chicken' with the waves

A spokesman for Falmouth Coastguard said the huge wave was created by gale force winds in the Bay of Biscay.

He said: 'The combination of spring tides and wind make it extremely dangerous to be in seafront places. This is a reckless activity and these men could have been killed in seconds.'

The storm-force wides came as forecasters predicted he coldest winter for more than 30 years is officially over and temperatures could hit 10C (50F).

But the 'dry and bright' weather will be replaced by 'wet and breezy' by as early as midweek. The short-lived introduction to spring is set to make way for rain, sleet and snow.

Or, as Charles Powell of the Met Office put it: 'The next couple of days will feel a little more like spring. It's going to be quite pleasant. We're going to see a marked difference - a little light relief, you might say. But it won't last.

'From Thursday things will start to change, with some outbursts of rain, sleet and hill snow.

'The rain will push into the South West and that will spread across central and eastern parts of England. It won't be particularly heavy, but wet and breezy.

'Further outbreaks of rain, snow and sleet will hit central areas on Friday and during the weekend with some snowfall over the Welsh mountains.'

The gloomy outlook comes after a weekend of heavy rain across the country

No fun by the sea: High tides and gales batter the East coast at Scarborough today

The Environment Agency yesterday issued a severe flood warning for parts of Cambridgeshire, while widespread flooding following 25mm of rain in Kent led to a rush of 999 calls

Several flood warnings remain in England, with more than 100 less severe 'flood watches' across Britain.

In London yesterday, 21mm fell at Heathrow Airport by mid-morning, and up to 23mm fell on the Isle of Wight in less than 24 hours.

But Britain got off lightly compared to much of Europe, where fierce rain and 130mph winds battered France, Spain Portugal and Germany on Sunday, leaving 51 people dead.

Many of the 45 victims in France drowned, while others died when hit by parts of buildings or trees and branches that were torn off by the wind. At least a dozen people were missing last night.

In too deep: A driver prepares to be towed out of a flood by police in a submerged road in Essex

Ruined: Cars left in York city centre are submerged by rising flood water from the River Ouse

Winds of 40-50mph have been reported over East Anglia and Kent, caused by the same low pressure system.

The rain is expected to clear by later today and many people will enjoy a sunny Monday although there could be light, scattered wintry showers over northern and western areas.

Tuesday is also expected to be dry and sunny but things could turn colder by the end of the week.

MeteoGroup said it has been the coldest February since 1996 and the coldest winter since 1978-79.

Rainfall was around 20 per cent higher than average at around 79mm in England and Wales and 72mm in Scotland.

Northern Ireland saw slightly less than average rainfall of 58mm.

The most rain (157mm) fell at Okehampton, Devon, and the least (26mm) at Shawbury, Shropshire.

Scotland and Northern Ireland had a slightly sunnier than average February with 80 hours and 75 hours respectively but England's sunshine hours were below the norm at 67 hours.

The sunniest place was Dunstaffnage, Argyll, with 106 hours. Luton in Bedfordshire, was the least sunny with just 39 hours.

No way through: Passers-by look at flooding which has submerged parts of York city centre

Risky: Cars drive through a flooded road in Essex where ducks are using the roadside to find food
Areas with flood warnings:

Anglian: Newport Pagnell, River Ivel - Blunham and Sandy, River Wid, River Colne, River Lark - Sicklesmere to Bury St. Edmunds, River Nene, River Crouch, River Flit, River Box, Olney and Newton Blossomville, River Great Ouse, River Came, Mardyke - North Stifford to Purfleet.

Northeast: North Sea at Sandsend, River Derwent at Buttercrambe Mill, North Sea at Kilnsea, Whitley Bay, Roker Sea front.

Southern: The River Arun from Broadbridge Heath to Pallingham Quay.
Thames: The River Stort at Harlow including Roydon.

Hurricane-force winds batter Europe

A violent storm with fierce rain and hurricane-strength winds battered France, Spain, Portugal and Germany yesterday, leaving at least 50 people dead.

Many of the 45 victims in France drowned, while others died after being hit by parts of buildings or branches of trees ripped off by the wind. At least a dozen people were missing and hundreds of others were injured.

The storm, named Xynthia, was the worst in France since 1999 when 90 people died.

Treacherous: A car is stranded on the beach after a road collapsed due to heavy flooding in L'Aguillon sur Mer, western France, left, while a wave batters the coast of A Guarda in Galicia, northwestern Spain,

Floods: A car is crushed by a tree in Darmstadt, Germany, left, while residents of these houses in Porto, Portugal, are trapped by rising water

Nearly 900,000 people in France were last night without electricity. Rivers overflowed their banks in Brittany, and the threat of avalanches was high in the Pyrenees Mountains and the southern Alps due to wind and wet snow.

In Paris, at least 100 flights were cancelled at the city's two main airports.

Winds reached about 130 mph (200 kph) on the summits of the Pyrenees and up to nearly 100 mph (160 kph) along the Atlantic Coast. The storm hit the Vendee and Charente-Maritime regions in southwestern France hardest.

The storm was moving eastward and parts of France along the border with Germany and Belgium were tonight on alert for heavy rain and high winds.