The Met Office has issued 24-hour yellow warnings with flooding “possible” as heavy rain is expected to hammer the UK. Britain has been enjoying a mini-heatwave in recent days, with glorious sunshine and temperatures topping 20C in many areas.
However, the Met Office has now issued yellow rain warnings, impacting North West England, South West England, the West Midlands and Wales, running from 12pm tomorrow (Tuesday) until 12pm on Wednesday. Flooding is possible for “a few homes and businesses” according to the forecaster, and power supplies and other services could also be interrupted. Journeys may take longer due to possible spray and flooding on the roads, while bus and train journeys could also be impacted by the stormy conditions.
Its forecast predicted: “A spell of heavy and persistent rain is expected to move north across western Britain during Tuesday into early Wednesday. Whilst there is some uncertainty in where the heaviest rain will fall, 20-40 mm of rain is expected fairly widely.
“A few places may see 50-75 mm of rain during this period: gradually building up in the west following rain on Monday, whilst in parts of the east, falling in shorter periods where heavy showers and thunderstorms become slow-moving.”
The weather warnings bring a close to almost two weeks of sunshine and largely dry conditions throughout the UK.
Cold weather could continue into the Easter weekend as maps from WXCharts show temperatures dipping to -2C in some regions.
Met Office Chief Meteorologist Matthew Lehnert explained that gloomier and unsettled conditions are “on the horizon” after a long spell of high pressure bringing dry weather and sunshine.
He said: “More persistent and heavy rain is expected on Tuesday into early Wednesday. A low-pressure system near Portugal is of particular interest as it moves towards the UK, bringing with it potentially heavy rain and thunderstorms.
“High rainfall totals are possible, but given the recent dry conditions, significant impacts are not anticipated. The situation remains under close watch, with further wet conditions anticipated on Thursday and another weather front moving in on Friday.”