Warnings are issued for wind and rain

After a brief period of sunny spells, conditions will deteriorate as an area of low pressure pushes in from the west on Wednesday evening heralding an unsettled period for much of England and Wales. Yellow National Severe Weather Warnings for rain and wind are now in place highlighting the potential for disruption to travel, coastal impacts, and localised flooding in some areas. Conditions are expected to turn cooler for the weekend.

Deputy Chief Meteorologist, Dan Harris said: "Low pressure moving across the south of the UK on Thursday will bring both a spell of heavy rain and areas of strong winds."

"The rain is expected to arrive from the southwest during Wednesday evening, before spreading northeast to many parts of England and Wales during Thursday, leading to difficult driving conditions and the risk of flooding in a few places. At the same time, winds are expected to pick up along south coastal areas in particular. However, it is not until Thursday morning that significantly strong northwesterly winds will first begin to affect parts of the west with gusts of 45 to 55 mph, locally 65mph around coasts expected. A little later, northerly winds are expected to develop more widely across eastern areas, most likely of similar strength, but there is a small chance of gusts in excess of 70mph should the low pressure system end up being at the stronger end of expectations".

"It is worth noting that there is a greater than usual uncertainty surrounding the track and intensity of this low-pressure system, so the public should stay up to date with the latest forecasts and warnings as the situation evolves, with adjustments to the forecasts likely at short notice."

Away from the warning areas Thursday will widely be a wet and windy day across England and Wales before sunny spells and blustery showers develop. Temperatures will be near normal but feel rather cold in the north westerly winds.

Further ahead

Friday will be a day of sunny spells and heavy, blustery showers for many. These will gradually ease later in the day, although winds will remain strong, with coastal gales likely, particularly in the east and northeast.

It will turn colder over the weekend as an Arctic Maritime airmass spills southwards in the wake of the mid-week low pressure system. There will be a mix of sunny spells and blustery showers which are likely to be wintry over mountain tops in Scotland; this is fairly typical for this time in the year. Sunday may offer a brief window of drier and brighter conditions.

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