Relief as Shropshire river levels recede
[gallery] UPDATE: Flood barriers came down in Ironbridge this afternoon as river levels across the county finally began to fall.
Businesses in the Gorge and in Bridgnorth said the flooding had cost them thousands of pounds in lost revenue over the festive period. The barriers were removed by workmen from along the Wharfage in Ironbridge this afternoon.
Meanwhile, the Environment Agency took Bridgnorth off flood warning.
Shropshire flooding - Your pictures
The fall in river levels came as the Met Office announced that 2012 was the second wettest year across the UK in records dating back to 1910.
Total rainfall for 2012 was just a few millimetres shy of the record set in 2000.
Persistent wet weather saw total rainfall for the UK for the year of 1,330.7mm (52.4 inches), just 6.6mm (0.26 inches) short of the figure for 2000.
Shropshire saw 133.2mm (5.2ins) of rain in December, more than one and a half times the usual figure.
Donna Byard, who runs the Ironbridge Antiques, Arts & Crafts Centre in Coalbrookdale with her husband Nigel, said they were relieved now the flood defences were finally coming down.
She said: "Many people didn't realise the shops were open because there wasn't proper signage."
Mr Byard said the shop's takings were down by about 40 per cent.
Michael Budge, assistant manager at The White Hart on the Wharfage, said they had also been hit.
He said: "Boxing Day, New Year's Eve and Christmas Eve were all busy because those are traditional days for people to go out, but the normal weekdays have been quiet. It's definitely had an effect."
Staff at Bridgnorth Rugby Club said they lost around 75 per cent of their usual weekend takings – about £1,200 – each weekend that home games were changed to away fixtures.
The club has not played a home game since December 16 and does not expected to play another home game for two weeks.
