The Met Office has issued a yellow thunderstorm warning for seven regions across the UK as forecasters predict the weather will bring havoc and disruption with it
The Met Office has issued a Yellow thunderstorm warning for swathes of the UK this Monday, encompassing East Midlands, East of England, London and South East England, North West England, South West England, Wales, and West Midlands.
Brace yourselves as a Yellow weather alert is to strike at around 1pm on Monday and isn’t expected to subside until 11pm. Forecasters have warned that those in the affected areas should prepare for frequent lightning strikes and some torrential rain showers.
The Met Office’s grim prediction reads: “Scattered showers and thunderstorms are expected to develop on Monday afternoon. Whilst these will be fairly fast-moving, rain may be intense for short periods of time and produce 20-30 mm in less than an hour, with 40-50mm within 1-2 hours in one or two places where thunderstorms grow larger. Lightning, hail and gusty winds will be additional hazards. Showers and thunderstorms will ease through the evening.”
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According to the Met Office, the yellow alert means you should prepare for potential spray and flash floods, which could wreak havoc on road conditions, potentially leading to road closures; homes and businesses might also be at risk of flooding, getting damaged from floodwater, lightning strikes, hail or howling winds.
The warning also includes a slim chance that power cuts may ensue and other services to homes and businesses could vanish into thin air; And consider this your heads-up that flooding or lightning strikes might lead to delays and perhaps even cancellations to train and bus services, reports Devon Live.
Here’s the full list of local areas affected:.
East Midlands: Northamptonshire.
East of England: Central Bedfordshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Luton, Thurrock.
London and South East England: Bracknell Forest, Buckinghamshire, Greater London, Hampshire, Kent, Medway, Milton Keynes, Oxfordshire, Reading, Slough, Surrey, West Berkshire, Windsor and Maidenhead, Wokingham.
North West England: Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester.
South West England: Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol, Cornwall, Devon, Gloucestershire, North Somerset, Somerset, South Gloucestershire, Swindon, Wiltshire.
Wales: Blaenau Gwent, Bridgend, Caerphilly, Cardiff, Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion, Conwy, Denbighshire, Flintshire, Gwynedd, Isle of Anglesey, Merthyr Tydfil, Monmouthshire, Neath Port Talbot, Newport, Pembrokeshire, Powys, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Swansea, Torfaen, Vale of Glamorgan, Wrexham.
West Midlands: Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Stoke-on-Trent, Telford and Wrekin, Warwickshire, West Midlands Conurbation, Worcestershire.
What is a yellow weather warning?
The Met Office has three categories of weather warning, depending on the likely impact of severe weather and also how likely it is to strike in a particular area.
A yellow warning is given when weather conditions could disrupt travel and daily routines, but aren’t expected to pose a threat to life or property. An amber warning is more serious, advising people to consider altering their plans to reduce risk.
A red warning indicates that the weather conditions are anticipated to be hazardous, with widespread property damage and potential risk to life, typically advising the public to refrain from travelling. The Yellow weather alert for thunderstorms will stay in effect until 11pm on Monday.