CROWDS FLOCK TO EASTER SUN
CROWDS flocked to seaside hotspots yesterday for a rare glimpse of sunshine after the unusually wet start to 2024 – and before the next round of unsettled weather gets under way.
Daytrippers packed out car parks at Barry Island yesterday, as the Easter weekend – widely regarded as the start of the tourism season in Wales – got into full swing.
Despite a good turnout on what was still a chilly day, with highs of just 120C, forecasters warned of a return to rainier conditions to come over the next few days.
The Met Office said more rain was forecast over the bank holiday weekend, as a band of heavy rain moves across England and Wales on Monday.
Met Office meteorologist Craig Snell said: “For England and Wales, generally Saturday [marked] the best for the sunshine.
“On Sunday, if you’re up early enough, it’s not going to be a bad start but it starts to go a bit downhill as we go from the afternoon onwards, and Monday certainly looks very wet in places.”
An area of cloud in the North Sea will spill over into England and Wales through today, leading to grey conditions and spots of rain.
A band of heavy rain will then move across England and Wales in the early hours of tomorrow and stay throughout the day.
Wales has escaped some of the UK’s worst conditions over recent days, with heavy rain having left Worcestershire County Cricket Club’s ground completely covered in water yesterday, while horseracing at Musselburgh Racecourse near Edinburgh was rained off due to a waterlogged track.
Meanwhile, the Easter getaway was marred by some issues on the roads and public transport yesterday.
One of Cardiff’s busiest routes – the A4232 link road – was blocked with queuing traffic after a vehicle caught fire (pictured below) on the southbound carriageway at around 1.30pm.
There were no immediate reports of casualties, and the road was cleared by 4.45pm.
At the other end of the nation, the A534 near Holt, Wrexham, was closed following an accident, with North Wales Police officers asking drivers to avoid the area.
It was the day’s third temporary road closure in North Wales following a crash on the A541 on the outskirts of Mold, Flintshire. And an early-morning collision also resulted in the closure of the A470 near Maentwrog.
The incidents came as holiday traffic headed into Wales. Long delays were reported in Deeside, near Northop and in Conwy, and there have been queues at the A55 Britannia Bridge, as well as on the M4 into South Wales over the past 48 hours.
On public transport, trains on the North Wales Main Line were cancelled or delayed yesterday afternoon due to track safety checks.
Replacement buses were running while a safety inspection continued.