Monster winds and rain to blast Brits as Met Office issues weather warnings
Britain is braced for monster winds and more heavy rain this weekend with weather warnings in place.
Large swathes of Wales and England, particularly the south, are subject of a yellow warning, issued by Met Office, for Saturday. The rain warnings concern parts of Scotland, such as Grampian and Central, Tayside & Fife.
But the unseasonal gusts are expected to be the main concern for Brits, and cause mayhem through until the early hours of Sunday. They'll reach 55mph in some places, forecasters say after they extended the weather warning to cover parts of the southwest of England.
"A deep area of low pressure will affect parts of the UK on Saturday with some very strong gusts of wind likely to its south," Met Office's website says today.
"A blustery and showery day (with some thunder) will see winds gust widely to 40 mph, and perhaps up to 55 mph during the daytime in association with showers. The strongest gusts are likely to occur mainly, but by no means exclusively, over hills and along coasts particularly in east and southeast England during the afternoon. Some minor damage and travel disruption is likely. Winds will moderate later in the evening and overnight."
Gales, snow and rain to batter country today with 80mph wind gustsThe warning for wind stretches from Cornwall up to Lincolnshire and other parts of the East Midlands. Coastal areas are feared to be worst hit, where communities will be affected by spray and large waves. Temporary structures, like tents and marques erected as part of parties and weddings - scheduled in July in the hope for glorious sunshine - will be at risk of damage or being blown away entirely.
They'll be delay on the roads, on trains and, potentially, at airports too as wind levels increase. The area of the weather warning covers all of London's airports, in addition to Bristol, Birmingham and East Midlands.
The rain warnings will cease in the morning but, overnight, parts of northern and eastern Scotland will be at risk of flooding. Some interruption to power supplies and other services is possible too, Met Office says.
It's stark contrast to the sweltering heatwave Brits experienced last month, the hottest June ever on record in the UK. A "Cerberus" heatwave is spreading across the continent but this isn't expected to lead to a further heatwave in the UK anytime soon, Mirror reported last night.
Instead, the rain will continue into next week. England has already seen some 55 per cent of its average July rainfall come in less than half of the month so far. Scotland has experienced 66 per cent of its average July rainfall in the same timeframe, the Met Office also told Mirror last night.
Typically, around 82mm of rain falls in July in most places in the UK. England has seen, on average, more than 45mm of precipitation already this month.