London, Dec 27 (IANS): Hundreds of Britons have been evacuated from their homes as Storm Bella was poised to pound the UK with gales and heavy rains.

Dozens of flood alerts and warnings were issued on Saturday across the UK as the country braces for Storm Bella, which will bring wind and rain in parts of England, Wales, Northern Ireland and southern Scotland, with coastal areas expected to be affected the most, Xinhua news agency quoted the Met Office as saying.

It comes as parts of the country are already struggling with recent wet weather and flooding.

On Christmas Day, more than 1,300 households in properties along the River Great Ouse in Bedfordshire, England, were advised to evacuate their homes as water levels rose.

Local evacuation centres have been set up to help those affected by flooding, said Bedfordshire Fire Service, adding that the volume of water made the situation "very, very difficult".

Some residents there spent Christmas night building trenches in a bid to hold off the flood water, reported the BBC.

The Bedford Borough Council said people who had been contacted and asked to evacuate were "permitted to go to other people's homes".

Bedfordshire is currently under Tier Four coronavirus restrictions, the highest level, which bans household mixing, while local police said the flooding situation overrides the current Covid-19 regulations.