The Met Office has issued its verdict on rain over the coming days in August after the driest July since records began hit the country this summer. Outbreaks of rain and showers are forecast today (August 4) in Northern Ireland, Scotland, western England and Wales. Some of southern England, however, may still not see rain.
Dry and warm in the east
The national forecaster has said it will be a dry day for much of the Midlands, the east and south-east of England with warm sunshine and high humidity. Temperatures are expected to decrease gradually in the second half of the week, and there is some more unsettled weather forecast for parts of the UK, including a yellow warning for thunderstorms in Northern Ireland. But the South East will continue to see little in the way of desperately needed rain.
Met Office comment on the week ahead
Commenting on the possibility of upcoming rain, the Met Office said: "The week ahead does introduce some more unsettled weather for parts of the UK, though heavy and persistent rain is generally focused on northern areas.
"Those further to the southeast will continue to see little in the way of rain, though some isolated showers are possible at times in central and southern England.
"Temperatures will gradually decrease in the second half of the week, with any warmth increasingly confined to the far east of England on Tuesday and a return to more average temperatures for many in the second half of the week."
Heat alerts and drought
In the latest heat spike, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has amber heat health alerts in place for the East Midlands, East of England, South East and London until Wednesday morning. There are also yellow heat health alerts for the North West, South West, West Midlands, and Yorkshire and The Humber.
July was southern England’s driest month ever recorded, with the whole of Wales and half of England plunged into drought. The summer of extreme weather also fuelled wildfires. Firefighters remained at the scene of a heathland blaze in Dunwich, Suffolk, on Monday, and crews declared a major incident as they tackled a huge wildfire in the Rhondda valley in South Wales.
The Met Office also said 19 counties recorded less than (or equal to) 1mm of rainfall across the entire month: Berkshire, Dorset, East Riding of Yorkshire, East Sussex, Essex, Gloucestershire, Greater London, Herefordshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Rutland, Surrey, Warwickshire and West Sussex.
