THOUSANDS of home owners in Kent have been warned of the possibility of serious flooding this weekend if there are further heavy downpours.

Several areas of the county have been saturated and the Environment Agency says several rivers are threatening to cause big problems.

Ray Kemp, a spokesman for the Environment Agency, said conditions were similar to those that preceded widespread floods in October 2000 when many homes in Kent were badly affected.

He stressed: "A number of the rivers in Kent and neighbouring Sussex just can't take anymore water because there is nowhere for it to go."

The agency is advising people not to walk beside swollen rivers, or to drive across flooded roads.