Cliff Notes: – | Latest Weather News
- An amber alert for thunderstorms is in effect for London and southeast England, with heavy rain expected to cause flooding and travel disruptions from 4am until 11am today.
- The Met Office warns that between 20 and 30mm of rain could fall within an hour in the amber zone, leading to potential power cuts and transportation delays.
- Further yellow warnings have been issued for the rest of England and parts of southern Scotland, with risk of flooding continuing into Sunday.
UK weather: Amber warning for thunderstorms comes into force for London and parts of southern England
An amber alert for thunderstorms is in place for London and most of southeast England, with forecasters warning of “torrential” rain.
The Met Office has also issued yellow warnings for much of the rest of England, stating there’s a risk of sudden flooding, Travel delays and power cuts today.
Scotland has a yellow warning for rain from 4pm today until midday on Sunday.
Today’s amber warning is in place for an area from Hampshire to Kent and up to Cambridge, including all of London, from 4am until 11am.
The latest weather forecast here
Between 20 and 30mm of rain could fall in one hour in the amber warning zone, going up to 60 to 90mm in just a few hours where heavy downpours persist.
According to the Met Office, some communities are “likely” to become cut off if roads flood, with flooded areas likely suffering cancellations to train and bus services, as well as power cuts.
Flooding of homes and businesses is also “likely”, according to the Met Office.
It is the first amber warning to be issued for London since January last year.
A separate yellow warning expands to most of England and some parts of southern Scotland until 9pm today.
There is also a yellow warning coming into effect for rain for the southwest of England on Sunday at midday until 3am on Monday.
Spray and flooding could cause road closures and even cut some communities off, the Met Office has said, adding that lightning strikes could damage buildings.
Sky weather producer Joanna Robinson said: “Heavy, thundery rain will move in from France on Friday night, pushing northwards across much of England on Saturday, reaching Scotland later in the day.
“The rain will be torrential in places, bringing up to 30mm in less than an hour, with 60-90 mm in less than three hours for some isolated spots.”
Recent dry weather could increase the risk of flash flooding, as torrential rain falling on hard, baked ground will run off rather than being easily soaked in.