UK weather: Mix of sunny spells and showers as unsettled conditions continue

Yellow weather warnings issued for heavy rain in northwest of UK

As October comes to an end this week, unsettled conditions are expected to bring spells of sunshine and showers, with heavy rain expected in some places.

A nippy start to Tuesday morning brings cloud and rain over Northern Ireland, Wales and southwest England early in the day, but this will move eastward and stay over Scotland by late afternoon.

Conditions may turn blustery in some areas, but breezy in others as showers continue mainly in the south and west of the country. Showers may be heavy and thundery at times.

The picture is much the same on Wednesday, but it will be gustier throughout the country. The heaviest and most frequent showers remain in the south and west, with some eastern parts staying dry.

The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning on Thursday and Friday for parts of the northwest of England and Wales as the heavy rain continues, with potential flooding and disruption to transport expected.

There may also be a “slight chance of power cuts” and loss of other services to some homes and businesses as a result of the downpours.

Chief meteorologist Andy Page said the unsettled weather to cap off the month is due to the remnants of “decaying tropical hurricanes” which disrupt weather conditions when they enter the North Atlantic.

“The remnants of former Hurricane Epsilon have subsumed into another deep area of low pressure to the south-west of Iceland, and although the low centre is a long way from our shoes and won’t cause disruption, the trailing weather fronts associated with this system will bring wind and rain to the UK, along with a potentially heavy swell,” he said.

“However, it is rain rather than wind that will dominate our attention later in the week with a so-called ‘warm conveyor’ set up to bring a flow of very moist and warm air to the UK from further south in the Atlantic, triggering heavy rainfall for high ground in the west of the UK.”

Mr Page said the areas under the yellow weather warning may see 30 to 40mm of rain, while isolated areas could see 50 to 80mm.

“We expect the heaviest rainfall to occur in the mountains of Wales where some areas could witness 130mm of rainfall,” he added.