Dennis wreaks havoc in wake of Ciara’s chaos
BY a cruel quirk of weather timing, it is another stormy weekend across the United Kingdom.
Last week, it was Storm Ciara rattling our roofs, flooding our streets and causing plans to be cancelled.
This time round it is Dennis, and it is bringing more rain but slightly less fierce winds, which will be no comfort to those parts of the country – notably the Calder Valley in West Yorkshire, around the town of Hebden Bridge – where amber weather warnings indicate the threat of flooding once again.
Yesterday, most parts of the country were being drenched. Today, the deluge is concentrated in the south and east, with an amber warning for the South Downs area in particular, where as much as 3in (80mm) of rain could fall.
Elsewhere, the winds will continue, up to 50mph or 60mph in exposed areas, but they are heading in from a southerly and south-westerly direction so there is mild air mixed in, which will keep temperatures up.
East Anglia will peak at 15C (59F), with the London region at 14C (57F), and Cardiff 12C (53F), but the more exposed westerly and northerly areas will be chillier – with 10C (50F) in Liverpool, 8C (46F) in Belfast and 7C (44F) in Glasgow and Edinburgh.
And as the day draws to a close, Scotland will see those winds pick up once again, reaching speeds of 75mph.
Dennis will be slower to clear off than Ciara, so tomorrow will see residual wind speeds of 40mph to 50mph, now from a westerly direction, pushing the mercury down markedly. The week ahead is set for more rain, but with sunny spells.
High pressure will build into the south as next weekend approaches, bringing the prospect of a more settled Saturday and Sunday on the horizon.