As forecasters warned of
another week of storms, Mr Pickles, who has taken temporary charge of the response to the crisis, issued an unreserved apology to those affected in the Somerset Levels.
Repeated calls for dredging were made to Downing Street and other Whitehall departments by farmers and others in the region from at least six months ago but funding was declined.
“We made a mistake, there’s no doubt about that and we perhaps relied too much on the Environment Agency’s advice,” Mr Pickles told BBC1’s Andrew Marr Show.
“We recognise that we should have dredged and I think it is important now that we get on the process of getting those people back into their houses once we are able to really do some serious pumping.”
Mr Pickles has criticised EA chief
Lord Smith for his refusal to apologise to flood-hit victims.
“It’s not a sign of
weakness,” he told the Mail on Sunday.
“A bit of reaching out
and humanity and humility is good for everybody, whether a distinguished
quangocrat or a member of the Cabinet.”
Asked on the Andrew Marr Show if the Prime Minister should also apologise, Mr Pickles said: “I’ll apologise. I’ll apologise unreservedly.
“I am really sorry that we took the advice … we thought we were dealing with experts.”
The Agency was “fit for purpose” and its staff were doing a fantastic job on the ground dealing with the floods but there were serious questions about parts of its leadership, he said.
David Cameron is to chair the latest meeting of the Government’s emergency Cobra meeting this afternoon.
Earlier this week the Prime Minister promised to do “everything he can” to help the flood-stricken
communities.
Today will see a brief
respite from the onslaught, as heavy rain and winds of more than 60mph die
down, but another storm is set to arrive tomorrow night.
And further storms will
continue to batter Britain until the weekend, forecasters at MeteoGroup have
predicted.
In Chertsey, Surrey, police
are investigating whether flooding led to the death of seven-year-old Zane
Gbangbola, who died in hospital after falling unwell at his home during the
early hours of Saturday morning.
It has been suggested that
the child may have been overcome by carbon monoxide fumes from a faulty flood
water pump being used to empty his parents’ home.
His parents remain in a
serious condition in hospital.
Two severe flood warnings are
still in place in the crisis-hit Somerset Levels, where many residents
have already been forced to evacuate their homes after weeks of heavy rain.
The Environment Agency has
also issued a third flood warning in the coastal village of Chiswell, in
Dorset. The authorities are being assisted by the armed forces to shore up sea
defences in the village, which were damaged by last week’s storms.
There are nearly 300
low-level flood alerts and almost 200 medium-risk flood warnings in place
across Wales and southern and central England, while several hundred homes in
Dorset, Surrey and Cornwall have been left without power.
In Croydon, South London, a
pedestrian underpass is to be turned into an emergency pond to hold hundreds of
litres of flood water posing a threat to homes and businesses.
Meanwhile, rails services in
and out of the West Country have been suspended and operators have put on
replacement bus services and slashed ticket prices for passengers.
Flooding at Athelney and
between Taunton and Bridgwater in Somerset means that all mainline routes to
the region from London are closed.
The diversionary route via
Yeovil is also closed at Crewkerne because of a landslip and is expected to
remain shut for up to a week.
The latest blow follows a
stretch of the rail line connecting Cornwall to the rest of the country falling
into the sea at Dawlish in Devon when an 80-yard stretch of the sea wall was
destroyed by high tides and stormy seas.
The Met Office warned that
river levels are expected to continue rising along the Thames, the Severn and
the Dorset Stour this week.
England has faced the wettest
January since 1766 and with the ground already saturated, further rain fall
poses a significant flood risk across the country, particularly in the south.
Since before Christmas around
5,000 properties have been affected by flooding across the country, including
40 in Somerset.
Paul Gundersen, Met Office
chief meteorologist, said: “We have another Atlantic storm bringing gales
and heavy downpours to many parts of the UK this weekend.
“Monday is expected to
bring a brief respite from the stormy conditions before more strong winds and
rain set in from the west on Tuesday.
“This will bring the
continuing risk of flooding and damaging winds bringing down trees to
cause disruption to travel and power networks.”
The Ministry of Defence has
put 1,600 personnel on six-hour notice to help in the south of the country if
needed, the Government said.
EA staff have been out in force
across England to try to stop more people falling victim to the storms by
installing flood defences, repairing damaged coastal defences,
deploying sandbags and clearing river blockages.
In East Sussex, the ruined
148-year-old, Grade-I listed West Pier in Brighton survived another night of
stormy weather after a large section collapsed into the English Channel on
Wednesday.
And an elderly woman has been
taken to hospital with serious injuries after a tree fell on to a white Ford
Fiesta in Birmingham.
Additional reporting by
Press Association