20 January 2024 , 19:19
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Brits have been warned by the Met Office to be ready for 80mph winds as temperatures rise when Storm Isha blows in.
The whole of the UK has been placed under a blanket yellow weather warning and large areas have been given a more severe amber alert. Forecasters have told of very strong winds and heavy rain.
Northern Ireland, northern England, Scotland, Wales and the coastlines of south west England are in the step above and all under the amber weather warnings that begin on Sunday evening. It comes as temperatures are also likely to reach double figures in many areas in much milder conditions with them having dropped below -10C in the past week.
The Met Offce’s Craig Snell said it would be “big change” after a week of sub-zero temperatures and snow. He added: “Most of us will see temperatures on the rise, double figures maximum by Sunday, but it comes at a big price as we’re going to see a very disturbed spell of weather today especially and that will run into Monday.”
A weather map for Sunday (WXCharts)The RAC sounded an urgent alert for motorists to take extra care. The motoring group warned: “Storm Isha is undoubtedly going to lead to some extremely hazardous conditions on the roads, so we encourage drivers to lower their speeds, leave plenty of extra stopping distance and consider delaying journeys in areas hit hardest by the heavy rain and very strong winds.”
Met Office says UK will be battered by monster rain storm with 4 inches falling
Nine lower league football fixtures in England have been postponed due to frozen pitches as the sports fixture list has been affected. Parts of the UK may also be subject to flooding caused by heavy rain, including Wales, Northwest England and especially Scotland, which saw sustained snowfall last week.
Blustery conditions on Saturday are set to become more stormy (Adam Gerrard / Daily Mirror)Mr Snell warned that this extreme weather could cause widespread disruption to travel as wind and water batter the country’s infrastructure. “There’s the potential for trees to fall on power lines that may then potentially lead to power cuts,” he said.
“Then we’ll see some disruptions to different kinds of trains, airports might see some delays and road surfaces will be affected." Although the extreme weather conditions are expected to mostly subside towards the middle of next week, the top parts of the country will remain under yellow weather warnings for wind until midday on Wednesday.