Summer that seems like a washout is in fact warmer and drier than average
Yellow rain warnings and flooding of recent weeks to be replaced by more seasonable warm weather
YOU could be forgiven for thinking it’s been a terrible summer. Just look out of the window and you’re as likely to see torrential rain as sunny skies – putting paid to any idea of a beach staycation.
But the Met Office says that, in fact, figures show that across the whole of this summer, it has been warmer and drier than usual.
Yellow thunderstorm warnings, indicating the weather could pose a risk to life, are in place this weekend for almost all of the north of England.
Meanwhile, London has been repeatedly hit by intense flooding in recent weeks. Last month, temperatures fell to the extent that households began using their central heating for longer. Centrica, which owns British Gas, reported that its profits had jumped during the so-called “Arctic spring”.
But taking the longer picture, forecasters said the weather has been better than expected for this time of year and predict the climate will become drier towards the end of August, with temperatures set to reach 25C or more.
They explain that long periods of heat have been punctuated by extreme rain events, which are so severe that we forget how much good weather we had during the heatwave.
Becky Mitchell, a Met Office meteorologist, said this summer has been “warmer and drier than average” despite the heavy rain and flooding.
“It’s going to stay quite changeable at least for the next week but as we head towards the end of August, there’s a likelihood we’ll see hotter spell of weather and drier more settled weather across the whole of the UK,” she said.
“It’s not been wetter on average but we’ve seen a lot of reports on the news about the flooding. That’s why it may feel like a bad summer, with not much warmth or sunshine.”
The only exception has been the South East, which has been wetter than usual after seeing 111 per cent of its average rainfall for the summer, she said.
Unimpressed weather watchers have vented their frustration at the summer washout.
One social media user, who posted a video of cars in knee-deep water under a bridge in Battersea, south-west London, remarked: “More flooding! When are we going to get some sunshine?”
A resident of Walthamstow, badly affected by torrential rain, filmed a deluged residential street and captioned the video: “As the monsoon returns to London, Walthamstow is once again flooded.”
Last month, temperatures exceeded 30C and Public Health England was so concerned that it issued a heat-health warning, urging the public to keep cool and support those who may be at risk.