A SPECIALIST water rescue team from a county fire station has been deployed to the Norfolk coast - where a tidal surge is forecast to bring severe flooding this weekend.

A boat team of five firefighters from Droitwich station arrived in Norfolk today, equipped with a specialist water rescue van and two boats.

The Environment Agency has issued 12 severe flood warnings, 18 warnings and 15 alerts across Norfolk, as a tidal surge is predicted to hit the coastline tonight (Friday).

Jon Pryce, Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service (HWFRS) area commander, said: "Our water rescue specialists are currently working with other fire services from across the UK to prepare for any extreme weather around the east coast, and respond accordingly whenever and wherever necessary."

The Droitwich team - which is accompanied by a trained tactical adviser and an officer - will remain in Norfolk over the weekend, working to evacuate communities affected by flooding.

Commander Pryce said: "They are a highly skilled team and will probably be used in the most hostile environment.

"We are prepared to support it and we can send relief crews up there over the weekend and into next week. We can support them indefinitely. "

The fire service has four boat teams, and around 100 staff, trained to work both in and on fast-flowing water.

Despite deploying resources to the east coast, Commander Pryce assured residents the service has more than enough capability to deal with emergencies in Hereford and Worcester.

"Communities in HWFRS should be assured that there is no predicted wide scale flooding in the two counties this weekend, and whilst our teams are deployed elsewhere in the UK there will be always be a resilient fire and rescue service in place, in both counties, to deal with any emergencies we are called to," he said.

The Met Office has issued severe weather warnings across Britain, while coastal communities in Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex are preparing for a tidal surge and possible flooding.