Storm Ashley to hit UK with heavy rain and 80mph winds this weekend
The first named storm of the season is set to arrive in the UK this weekend with ‘severe gales’ and heavy rain leading to potentially widespread flooding.
Two fronts of rough weather are blowing in from the Atlantic, with the first expected to bring downpours over Friday night that could worsen existing flood threats.
The second – named Storm Ashley – will bring ‘bring very strong and gusty southerly winds’ of up to 80mph on Sunday, forecasters say.
Much of southern England and the Midlands woke up to dense fog on Friday, with delays to road traffic and public transport expected.
Warnings had already been issued for flooding following heavy rain on Thursday.
Nearly 50 flood alerts were in place around the country, designating areas where rivers and seafronts are expected to burst their banks.
Flooding is expected in a number of areas in northern England and around the Wales-England border, with a particularly high concentration of alerts in Worcestershire and Gloucestershire.
There are also more than 150 flood warnings – designating areas where flooding is possible – around the country.
They include stretches of the Thames from London out to Wiltshire, as well as around 30 spots along England’s southern and eastern coastline.
Since the ground is already saturated with water in these areas, tonight’s rain is likely to worsen the risk of flooding.
The Met Office says temperatures will be ‘rather mild despite the wind and rain’, with the mercury hovering in the mid-teens on Friday.
Saturday will be a reprieve for most areas, with just a few showers expected to break up sunny spells and lighter winds ‘for all’, forecasters added.
The weather is then expected to turn ‘wet and windy on Sunday with gales or severe gales expected’ as Storm Ashley makes landfall early in the morning and gradually blows eastwards.
The worst of the wind is expected in Scotland, north-west England, north-west Wales and Northern Ireland, where a yellow warning for wind is in place on Sunday.
The Met Office said there is a ‘small chance’ of injuries and deaths from flying debris in these areas.
Other risks include damage to buildings, power cuts and transport disruption.
The alert is in place until around midday on Monday, while the heaviest showers are expected to have subsided by then.
Forecasters expect the rest of the week’s weather to ‘remain generally unsettled, with showers or longer spells of rain’.
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