Storm Claudia to bring month’s worth of rain in a day with warnings of flooding

Storm Claudia could bring up to a month’s worth of rain in a day as heavy downpours batter parts of Wales.

Amber warnings for “persistent and heavy” rain come into force from noon on Friday until midnight and cover parts of Wales, the Midlands, the South West, the South East and east of England.

In England some places could have 80mm of rain, while part of Wales may be hit by 100-150mm on the higher ground, or 50-75mm generally across the region, the Met Office warning says.

All of this may be exacerbated by strong easterly winds, as well as thunderstorms later on Friday, the forecaster adds.

Storm Claudia, named by the Spanish Meteorological Agency, has already brought heavy rain and strong winds to Spain and Portugal.

Met Office chief meteorologist Matthew Lehnert said: “Storm Claudia will bring very heavy rainfall to a large swathe of central and southern England and Wales on Friday into Saturday.

“This rain will become slow moving, and some areas could see up to a month’s worth of rain in 24 hours.

“Much of this will fall on saturated ground, increasing the chances of flooding and contributing to the amber warnings we have issued.”

A separate yellow warning for rain covers much of England, from Cheshire and North Yorkshire to the south coast, for a 24-hour period from 6am on Friday, and a warning for winds of up to 70mph in some western areas of the UK is in place from noon until midnight.

The Met Office said the weather may cause power cuts, travel disruption and damage to buildings.

Travellers are urged to be cautious as a large swathe of central and southern England and Wales on Friday into Saturday will be soaked.

In Ireland, Met Eireann has a “status orange” rain warning for Dublin, Wexford and Wicklow, while a yellow warning is in place for other eastern counties and much of the south.

The storm comes as the Environment Agency warned that England will experience widespread drought next year without a wet winter.

The country has received only 83% of the average rainfall for January to October, and suffered the driest spring for 132 years and the hottest summer on record.

Despite recent rainfall, the situation remains “precarious”, the Environment Agency said.

And if the winter is drier than normal, much or all of the country will be in drought by next spring, with the risk of hosepipe bans, effects on crops and wildlife, and wildfires as the summer progresses.

Meanwhile, the Met Office said that unlike many named storms, Storm Claudia is not expected to directly cross the country, and instead will maintain its position in the west.

Floods minister Emma Hardy said: “As parts of the country are forecast to experience heavy rainfall, I recognise people will be concerned about the risk to their homes and livelihoods.

“I am in regular contact with the Environment Agency on their response to the expected flooding who, alongside local authorities and the emergency services, are already taking action to keep communities safe.”

Travel

The AA has advised against travelling in the “hazardous weather”, saying: “Safety comes first. Conditions may change quickly, so stay updated and make sure you’re prepared before you travel.”

It added: “Flood water can appear quickly, and even shallow water can be dangerous – never try to drive through it.”

National Rail advised passengers to check before travelling with disruption to services expected across England, Wales and Scotland on Friday and Saturday.

In Devon, flooding between Exeter and Barnstaple is expected to affect trains until Sunday, with a reduced service on Chiltern Railways on Friday when CrossCountry, London Northwestern and West Midlands services are likely to be hit by the bad weather.

Speed restrictions were in place on some ScotRail services on Friday morning.

The Environment Agency said there is likely to be some surface water and river flooding in the north of England.

It said it has been working with emergency services and local authorities to ensure they are fully prepared for when the storm hits on Friday.

Flood duty manager Ben Lukey said: “Storm Claudia will bring heavy prolonged rainfall across parts of England, with significant surface water flooding probable across parts of central England on Friday.

“River flooding impacts are also possible tomorrow and into Saturday.”

On Friday morning, the agency had issued three flood warnings – where flooding is expected – in the North West of England, with more than 100 alerts in place around the country.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency had a flood warning in place for Glen Lyon in Perthshire, while Natural Resources Wales has issued 20 flood alerts.

In the north of the country, the weather is expected to turn colder, with overnight frost in places from Friday to Sunday.