Warning: Yellow
To expect: Rain
Affected areas: East of England, London and South East England, South West England, Wales
Start time estimate: Thursday 11pm
End time estimate: Friday 1pm
The Met Office has issued a Yellow rain warning for several regions across the UK until Friday afternoon.
The warning is covering parts of East of England, London and South East England, South West England, Wales. All local areas affected are listed below.
Heavy rain is set to impact the regions, beginning at approximately 11pm on Thursday and clearing by 1pm on Friday.
The Yellow warning for rain was issued at 11:56am on Thursday, August 28.
A Met Office forecast said: “Heavy showers, perhaps merging into longer spells of heavy rain at times, are likely to reach southwest England and south Wales Thursday night, before pushing quickly east to affect other parts of southern and southeastern England into Friday morning. Whilst not everywhere will see the heavy showers or rain, where they do occur 10-20 mm of rain in less than an hour is possible. 50-70 mm of rain is possible in a few hours where heavy showers become more prolonged, this most likely near coasts. Some flooding in these wetter areas is possible. A few showers could be accompanied by the odd rumble of thunder, again this more likely near to coasts. Heavy showers and rain should clear into the North Sea by early afternoon.”
What to expect
Flooding of a few homes and businesses is likely; Bus and train services probably affected with journey times taking longer; Spray and flooding on roads probably making journey times longer.
What should you do during persistent rain?
Check if your property could be at risk of flooding. If so, consider preparing a flood plan and an emergency flood kit.
Give yourself the best chance of avoiding delays by checking road conditions if driving, or bus and train timetables, amending your travel plans if necessary.
People cope better with power cuts when they have prepared for them in advance. It’s easy to do: consider gathering torches and batteries, a mobile phone power pack and other essential items.
Be prepared for weather warnings to change quickly: when a weather warning is issued, the Met Office recommends staying up to date with the weather forecast in your area.
For further details see Met Office Warnings & Advice.
Full list of local areas affected
East of England
Essex, Hertfordshire, Southend-on-Sea, Suffolk, Thurrock
London and South East England
Bracknell Forest, Brighton and Hove, Buckinghamshire, East Sussex, Greater London, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Medway, Portsmouth, Slough, Southampton, Surrey, West Sussex, Windsor and Maidenhead, Wokingham
South West England
Bournemouth Christchurch and Poole, Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Isles of Scilly, Plymouth, Torbay
Wales
Blaenau Gwent, Bridgend, Caerphilly, Cardiff, Carmarthenshire, Merthyr Tydfil, Monmouthshire, Neath Port Talbot, Newport, Powys, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Swansea, Torfaen, Vale of Glamorgan
What is a yellow weather warning?
The Met Office has three categories of weather warning, depending on the likely impact of severe weather and also how likely it is to strike in a particular area.
A yellow warning is issued when weather conditions are expected to disrupt travel and traffic and may impact on daily routines but are not likely to pose a risk to life or property.
An amber warning is more severe and advises people to think about changing their plans to minimise the risk.
A red warning means weather conditions are expected to be dangerous with widespread damage to property and a risk to life, with the public usually advised to avoid travelling.
The Yellow weather alert for rain will remain in effect until 1pm on Friday.