The Met Office has warned that heavy rain and stronger winds will sweep across parts of the UK from Sunday, bringing an abrupt end to the brief summer heatwave. A band of wet weather is forecast to move in from the Atlantic, with the heaviest downpours affecting western areas.
Areas at risk of heavy rain on Sunday
The following 23 areas are most at risk of heavy rain on Sunday evening, according to Met Office maps:
- Cornwall
- Devon
- Somerset
- Dorset
- Bristol
- Gloucestershire
- Herefordshire
- Worcestershire
- Shropshire
- Powys
- Gwynedd
- Ceredigion
- Carmarthenshire
- Pembrokeshire
- Swansea
- Cardiff
- Monmouthshire
- Cheshire
- Greater Manchester
- Merseyside
- Lancashire
- Cumbria
- Northern Ireland
The rain is expected to push across western parts of the UK on Sunday evening, affecting Wales, southwest England, northwest England and Northern Ireland before spreading further east overnight. Some locally heavier bursts are embedded within the band.
Heatwave before the rain
Before the wetter weather arrives, much of England will experience a short but intense burst of summer heat. Temperatures will rise steadily from Tuesday, with dry and sunny conditions across much of England, Wales and eastern Scotland. The hottest weather is expected on Wednesday, when parts of southeast England could reach 35C, while temperatures around 29C are expected to continue into Thursday in some areas.
The UK Health Security Agency has issued Heat Health Alerts covering parts of England between Tuesday and Thursday. Met Office Deputy Chief Forecaster Gregory Wolverson said the hot spell would be "short-lived", with the highest temperatures focused in the southeast before cooler Atlantic air spreads south later in the week.
Cooler conditions return
By Friday, temperatures are expected to return much closer to seasonal averages across most of the UK, with cooler conditions arriving first in northern and western areas. Saturday is likely to remain largely dry for many, but forecasts suggest Sunday could mark the return of more unsettled weather, bringing spells of rain and strengthening winds. Forecasters stress there is still some uncertainty over the exact timing and intensity of the system.
Despite recent rainfall in parts of Scotland and Northern Ireland, wildfire conditions are also expected to remain elevated across much of England and Wales because of the prolonged dry weather.
