After a sunshine break, here comes the usual shower
WE tried to fix the roof when the sun was shining but, by the time they managed to prise all the old tiles off, the April showers had already arrived.
Since then, raindrops have drummed down on the blue tarpaulin stretched over our home, and water pooled alarmingly above our heads. In truth, I’m not too worried. We once lived in a top-floor flat in an old Victorian house in Leeds with a roof so leaky we had to put saucepans out along the carpet every time it rained. But as for our poor roofers staring sullenly up at the grey skies, they shake their heads wearily. April, they say, alluding to TS Eliot, is a proper nightmare of a month.
During the next few days expect more of this. On Sunday and Monday, heavy rain and even gales are forecast for the South East where just a week ago the London Marathon broke records for being the hottest in history. It is these fluctuations in temperature that make April such a notorious month for sudden outbreaks of rain.
At this time of year, the jet stream is moving northwards, which, as well as heralding warmer temperatures, also drives low pressure systems towards the UK. Interestingly, the icy sea temperatures at this time of year mean rain clouds develop more frequently over the land mass of the British Isles.
At the same time, a contrast in air temperature at different heights is particularly distinct in April. The air is still generally cool but the ground has already started to heat up as the result of longer sunny days. The rising currents of air that ensue can quickly lead to localised downpours, which are often very difficult to forecast.
It’s dismal stuff but, fortunately, you do not need to look all that far to find solace on the horizon. For, as another old saying goes: “March winds and April showers bring forth May flowers.”
I might tell that to the roofers outside, grumbling away in their van.