Britain is braced for a washout weekend
BRITAIN is in the firing line of some early autumn downpours later this weekend – thanks to a tropical storm system.
Swathes of the country are braced for heavy rain tomorrow while gales threaten to hammer the Scottish coasts.
The remains of “Potential Tropical Cyclone Ten” (PTC10) are due to arrive on UK shores from the US late tonight.
They will combine with a separate low pressure system due to sweep the country over the next couple of days.
Downpours
The Met Office predicts a largely fine and settled day today before the weather takes a turn during the early hours of tomorrow. Forecaster Oli Claydon said parts of the South-west could see up to an inch of rain with more possible over high ground.
“The heaviest downpours will be in the South-west with rain expected to continue into Monday. Tuesday will see further scattered showers before things start to settle down as this system leaves the UK by Wednesday,” he said.
“Britons should make the most of the fine weather today with a dry and bright picture on the cards for most. There will be some showers mainly around East Anglia and the East Midlands, but we expect a largely good day elsewhere with temperatures of 69.8F (21C) in the South and the high 60Fs elsewhere.
“Sunday is going to turn quite humid as air wrapped up in this system reaches the UK and by Tuesday we could see highs of 77F in the south and 69.8F in the North. It will also be quite warm overnight.”
PTC10 originated in the US as a deep low pressure system. It was initially feared to develop into a full-blown hurricane but has since weakened on its path across the Atlantic.
Yesterday marked the start of the meteorological autumn after what turned out to be an unusually wet summer.
Met Office figures reveal the past three months have also been slightly warmer than average with temperatures around 32.7F above average.
However 12.6 inches of rain between June and August was around 33 per cent more than the UK average of 9.5in.
Met Office climate scientist Dr Mark McCarthy said: “People may well remember the 2017 summer as a bit of a damp squib but interestingly, although it has been notably wetter than average for many areas, it has also be warmer than average.”