UK weather forecast – Met Office warning of ‘danger to life’ today after two inches of rain sparks floods that could cut off towns
THE Met Office has warned there is a danger some towns may become cut off today after parts of the country were drenched in two inches of rain. According to weather experts, that would be the equivalent of getting a fortnight’s rain in just a matter of hours. An amber warning was put in place […]
THE Met Office has warned there is a danger some towns may become cut off today after parts of the country were drenched in two inches of rain.
According to weather experts, that would be the equivalent of getting a fortnight’s rain in just a matter of hours.
An amber warning was put in place for an area centred around Norwich which covers parts of Norfolk and Suffolk.
It said homes and businesses are likely to be flooded with damage to some buildings and adds there is “a good chance some communities are cut off by flooded roads”.
It also warned of a “danger to life” due to deep or fast flowing floodwater and says power cuts are possible and driving conditions could become “difficult”.
A yellow warning stretching between just north of Essex to north Lincolnshire has also in place since 8am this morning and last until 5pm tonight.
The UK has already been hit by torrential rain and more is expected.
In Islay, in the Inner Hebrides, 55.6mm fell in the last 24 hours, while in northern England some areas saw around 20mm.
In the early hours of Sunday, police forces across the country, including in Norfolk and West Yorkshire, took to social media to warn drivers of standing water on the roads.
Met Office meteorologist Becky Mitchell said that while rain in northern parts will ease by this afternoon, eastern areas could expect downpours.
“That band of rain is going to be quite slow moving across the far east,” she said.
Ms Mitchell said Cavendish in Suffolk had already seen 25.6mm of rain in the last 12 hours, while overall eastern areas could be hit by 50 to 60mm of rain on Sunday.
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“That could give a risk of some flooding, it’s a little bit more likely that some areas could see more impact in that second warning,” she said.
Winds in eastern coastal areas are also expected to bring chilly conditions, with temperatures dropping to around 12 or 13C.
The Environment Agency has issued four flood warnings for Sunday where immediate action is required.
These cover two warnings for the River Vyrnwy, the Chediston watercourse at Halesworth and the Arkle Beck river at Reeth.A further 47 flood alerts have been issued advising people to prepare for possible flooding across northern, central and south-east England.
After a brief dry spell on Sunday evening, the wet and windy weather is forecast to return across the country on Monday, Ms Mitchell said.
“There aren’t currently any signs of much drier weather,” she added.
“It looks like it’s going to stay quite changeable through the rest of the week.”
A 1,000-mile wide low pressure vortex is set to bring in very wet and windy weather which will last until at least Wednesday.
Powerful 40ft waves are due on Monday off the west coast – with 22ft waves on Scotland’s west coast.
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Then another low depression is set to move in on Thursday bringing with it more wind and rain.
The north-west could see 70mph gale force winds.
That could merit becoming the first UK-named storm of autumn, the Met Office said.
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