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The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning for Thursday, as heavy rain is set to hit the north-east of England and cause potential flooding and travel disruption.
Flood warnings continue across parts of the UK, after extreme rainfall on Sunday and Monday caused roads and schools to close and wreaked transport chaos on commuters.
The autumn equinox coincided with heavy downpours, with the Environment Agency issuing 32 warnings and 94 flood alerts.
An amber and yellow weather warning remained in place across most of England and Wales until the end of Monday, with several schools up and down the country still closed on Tuesday.
The A421 in Bedfordshire is closed in both directions between A6 and M1 J13 due to flooding. Also, the A505 in Hitchin, Elton Way in Watford and the A404 between Chorleywood and Rickmansworth were all shut on Monday morning for the safety of road users, Hertfordshire County Council said.
Dan Harris, deputy chief meteorologist at the Met Office said on Wednesday and Thursday “unsettled weather is set to return as further frontal systems move in from the Atlantic, bringing showers or longer spells of rain to many parts of the UK”.
Drier interlude before heavy rain expected towards the weekend
The Met Office has predicted a drier interlude in the coming days, before the wet weather resumes towards the weekend.
Chief meteorologist Paul Gundersen said: “The rainfall from Monday has now cleared away to leave a drier interlude for many, whilst some residual rain moves southwards across parts of Scotland.
“This drier spell will last until early Wednesday for most, before the next area of low pressure brings further rain later on Wednesday and into the latter part of the week.
“Further rain is likely for parts of England and Wales on Thursday. If and where this falls on saturated ground, the sensitivity to potential impacts is increased. At present, the heaviest rain looks like falling across east-facing hills of northern England, although there is some uncertainty in the regional focus.”
Yellow weather warning issued for Thursday
The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning for heavy rain on Thursday, which could lead to travel disruption.
The forecaster has warned there is a slight chance of power cuts and loss of other services to homes and business, and a small change of flooding.
Sewage alerts issued across England’s south coast
Sewage alerts have been issued across England, putting swimmers at risk of illness.
Along the south coast, alerts have been issued by the charity Surfers Against Sewage for Southampton, and the stretch of sea near Folkestone.
It follows two days of heavy rain which saw 100mm fall in some areas in just 24 hours.
Disruption at Euston expected until 1pm
National Rail has just said the ongoing disruption caused by heavy flooding between Rugby and Milton Keynes is now expected to last until 1pm.
Northwestern Railway and Avanti West Coast services are being affected – including trains to and from Euston Station, some of which have been cancelled and delayed.
Bedfordshire, Oxfordshire and other parts of UK hit by more than 100mm of rain
Commuters are facing road closures and disrupted rail services on Tuesday as dozens of flood warnings remain in place.
It comes after parts of Bedfordshire, Oxfordshire, Warwickshire and Northamptonshire saw more than 100mm of rain in the last 48 hours with Woburn in Bedfordshire seeing 132mm recorded, more than twice the amount of its September average rainfall amount according to the Met Office.
The Environment Agency had 32 flood warnings, meaning flooding is expected, and 94 flood alerts, meaning it is possible, in place across England on Tuesday morning, but a respite from more heavy rain is expected.
Bedfordshire resident who saw car stuck in floodwater says flooding is area’s worst ever
A resident of Marston Moretaine in Bedfordshire saw a car stuck in floodwater on the A421 and said he had never seen flooding like it in the area.
Lee Elliott, 36, said: “I’ve never seen anything like it. We’ve lived here for about 10 years and that is the worst I’ve ever seen it.
“It has flooded there before, but nothing like that. It’s normally gone within a few hours.
“I was out last night helping push cars out of the floods because we came home quite late last night and saw the cars stuck in there, so we went down there to help them.”
Flooding causes disruption at Euston station
Euston station has apologised for the disruption caused to passengers after flooding near Milton Keynes caused rail delays.
In a post on X, they said: “We’ve been working through the night to monitor the situation & make sure the tracks are safe for trains to run.”
Met Office’s five-day weather forecast
Showery rain will affect Scotland, extending to parts of northern England later which can be heavy at times. Elsewhere it will be a brighter at times, though fresher day than on Monday, with a few showers developing.
Rain and showers largely die out across the northeast, though showers continuing across coasts. Cloudy elsewhere and turning cool in sheltered spots.
Wednesday:
Cloudy and mild in the south but rain reaches the southwest during the late morning, spreading eastwards across much of England and Wales by the end of the day.
Outlook for Thursday to Saturday:
Wet and perhaps windy weather affecting most areas on Thursday. Northern Scotland should remain drier, and colder. A showery, blustery and chilly northerly airstream for all on Friday.
Isolated showers and average temperatures in coming days
Maximum temperatures are expected to rise no higher than the mid-teens over the coming days, the Met Office has said.
Meteorologist Liam Eslick said: “There may be odd, heavier bursts just clipping the South East as a system does slowly start to move away, but it’s a much drier day for most people.
“There is going to be some isolated showers here and there, but they’re going to be very light, nothing like the torrential rain that we’ve seen over the last couple of days.”
River levels should start to decrease to more manageable levels elsewhere towards the end of the day as more water seeps into the ground.
The shift to drier conditions in southern areas will also signal a slight dip in temperatures.
Travel chaos continues for road and rail commuters after extreme rainfall
Rail passengers on two of the UK’s busiest routes face cancellations, diversions and delays during the Tuesday rush hour, due to signalling problems and flooding. Meanwhile a key road in Bedfordshire remains closed due to heavy flooding, with no indication of when the A421 might reopen.
The main line from Bournemouth, Southampton and Winchester to London Waterloo will have no trains running between Basingstoke and Winchester “until approximately 10am” according to National Rail.
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Source: independent.co.uk
