Wednesday 17 August 2022 02:10 AM Battered Britain faces another day of thunderstorms as forecasters issue 29 ... trends now
After weeks of sweltering weather which has caused drought and left land parched, 'Battered Britain' faces a second day of thunderstorms and flash flooding with lives, homes and businesses in 'danger' as forecasters issue 29 more flood alerts across the UK.
After weeks of sweltering weather the Met Office's yellow thunderstorm warning for Wednesday forecasts conditions in which '20-30 mm of rain is possible within an hour'.
Torrential showers across huge swathes of the country have left roads swamped, drains deluged and people desperately battling to keep floodwaters at bay.
Communities in central, southern and eastern parts of England and south-east Wales could now face flash flooding as well as transport disruption and power cuts. They could be cut off by flooded roads, and the chance of fast-flowing or deep floodwater may cause danger to life, the warning also adds.
In the South West, parts of Cornwall and Devon have been hit hard, with dramatic scenes of torrential showers and flash flooding on roads in Newquay, Cornwall, Bishop's Tawton, Devon, and Haywards Heath in West Sussex.
In Dorset people used buckets and makeshift containers to try to divert flash floodwater away from a restaurant in West Bay, while workers in Winchester were yesterday seen clearing a drain grid on a swamped road.
Streets were flooded in Port Talbot, Wales and in Loughborough, the Morrisons supermarket car park was flooded.
However experts have warned that it would take 'weeks' of heavy rainfall to help parts of the country recover from the driest July on record and the driest first half of the year since 1976, as the ground will struggle to absorb the water and surface run-off causes flooding.
This means wildfires are still a possibility on the 'tinderbox dry' land Britain has been left with.
Authorities moved Yorkshire to official drought status on Tuesday, following parts of the South West, southern and central England and the East of England last week.
Last night a huge fire ripped through a field near Buckley Hill Road in Bootle, Merseyside, with fire crews from Buckley Hill and Kirkby called at at 9.35pm to reports of a 'major wildfire', with witnesses worried about the Shy Lowen Horse and Pony Sanctuary, the Liverpool Echo said.
Scotland was hit by travel disruption across rail networks and on roads after torrential overnight rain, including flooding at Perth station.
In Combe Florey, between Minehead and Taunton in Somerset, the A358 remained closed yesterday afternoon after a mudslide on Monday night. Workmen removed more than 100 tons of mud and potatoes sliding in from nearby fields.
DORSET: : A dogwalker gets a soaking in Burton Bradstock in Dorset during torrential rain from a thunderstorm which caused flash flooding
LONDON: A man runs across the Millennium Bridge in London on Tuesday after getting court in a sudden downpour of rain
WINCHESTER: A man tries to clear a drain grid during flooding in Winchester yesterday as parts of the country are hit by heavy rain
SOMERSET: Workers have had to remove more than 50 tonnes of mud and potatoes yesterday following the mudslide on the A358 in Somerset
DORSET: Locals and visitors join together to try to clear floodwater away from Seagulls restaurant at West Bay in Dorset yesterday
NORTH WALES: Thomas Davies stepped into his back garden to test out his phone's camera during thunderstorms near his home in Rhyl, north Wales, on Sunday evening
CORNWALL: A downstairs deluge cascades down steps at St Mabyn in Cornwall during torrential downpours of rain on Tuesday
CORNWALL: The wet weather helped form a waterspout alongside the south coast of Cornwall over a tour boat in Fowey Harbour, creating a vortex (pictured on Tuesday)
The Met Office warning reads: 'Whilst some places will miss them, thunderstorms and areas of heavy rain will develop quite widely on Wednesday across central, southern and eastern parts of England and southeast Wales.
'20-30 mm of rain is possible within an hour, but where areas of thundery rain become slow-moving, some places could see 60 mm in less than three hours.
'A few spots could see more rainfall than this still, whilst hail and lightning may be additional hazards.' The Environment Agency had issued 29 flood alerts by Tuesday night.
The heaviest downpours on Tuesday were at Spadeadam in Cumbria, with 25.4mm of rain, and in Trengwainton House, Cornwall, with 18.4mm, the Met Office said.
Footage and photos shared to social media showed torrential rain and floodwater sweeping through towns across southern England and Wales, including Newquay in Cornwall, Bishop's Tawton in Devon, Haywards Heath in West Sussex, Port Talbot in south-west Wales, and Bridport in Dorset.
Amid the weather warnings, Britons have been urged to prepare a 'grab bag' of essentials in case of flooding as torrential rain and thunderstorms hammer parts of the country today, causing mudslides while deluging rail lines and streets.
Firefighters said people should prepare a flood kit, with those living in basement flats or low-lying properties particularly at risk as the heatwave ends with a bang - and up to two inches of rain falling in three hours today.
The National Flood Forum said a flooding 'grab bag' should contain insurance and other important documents, mobile phones and chargers, emergency cash and credit cards, and any medication or prescription forms.
The London Fire Brigade said people should be 'prepared and know what to do should a flood occur' and 'use sandbags to limit the water flow and move belongings to a higher level'. The Met Office said people living in 'low-lying properties' should make sure their valuable items are 'ready to go', or 'on a higher level of your house'.
After weeks of sweltering weather the Met Office's yellow thunderstorm warning for Wednesday forecasts conditions in which '20-30 mm of rain is possible within an hour'
Last night a huge fire ripped through a field near Buckley Hill Road in Bootle, Merseyside, with fire crews from Buckley Hill and Kirkby called at at 9.35pm to reports of a 'major wildfire' (pictured)
A driveway has completely flooded outside of a home in Port Talbot, Wales as heavy rain continues to pour down
The guidance will apply to millions of people - with Environment Agency the estimating that 5.2million homes in England, or one in six properties, are at risk of flooding. This includes 2.4million at risk from rivers and the sea, 1million of these also susceptible to surface water flooding and a further 2.8million at risk of surface water alone.
One Twitter user shared a video of floodwater in Newquay, writing: 'I've never seen rain like this. Our road is flooding £Newquay.'
Another Twitter user in Bishop's Tawton, north Devon, said: '(F)lash flooding causing use of sandbags to prevent water in house, despite recent flood work by @EnvAgency urgent need for solutions.'
ScotRail imposed speed restrictions on some routes on Tuesday, while in Perth, Network Rail said it dealt with flooding at the station.
Wednesday is the fourth day in a row of thunderstorm warnings in the UK and it leaves communities in areas like Sussex, Kent and Hampshire braced for possible heavy downpours.
Met Office forecaster Simon Partridge said that 'heavy thundery showers could develop in warm muggy air' and 'there could be some high totals (of rainfall), particularly if you see some heavy thunderstorms come in one after another'.
People in northern regions should be able to enjoy a day that feels fresher, a little cooler and is mostly dry - with some sunny spells.
Mr Partridge said: 'The ground has been so baked dry because of the heat and the lack of rain for a number of days. When the rain has come, it has been hitting ground that is completely dry and baked dry like concrete.
'It is running off than more traditionally. If there is some moisture in the ground, it is a lot easier for it to soak up the rain that hits it. We have probably a higher run-off rate for the rainfall than we would normally have.
'It is almost like all the fields have been tarmacked because the water has been running off them as there has been so little of it that has gone into the ground.'
Vehicles drive along the very wet M25 near Swanley in Kent today as heavy rain creates surface spray and reduces visibility
Locals and visitors join together to try to clear floodwater away from Seagulls restaurant at West Bay in Dorset on Tuesday
The A358 in Somerset has been closed at Combe Florey on Tuesday after a huge mudslide that has caused chaos for local motorists
The Met Office's weather warning will continue to stay in place today for southern England, where communities face being cut off by flooded roads and power cuts.
Spokesman Stephen Dixon said parts of the country could see up to 50mm of rain within three hours: 'We have got thundery showers possibly for a lot of people in the UK. Within the warning area, it is important to note that thunderstorms could pop up anywhere. That being said, some areas could miss the rain altogether.
'That risk of thunderstorms will move to southern areas of the UK as the day goes on.' Mr Dixon said this risk will continue throughout Wednesday.
'Early on Thursday morning, the main risk that we are looking at is for the South East. The risk then decreases as the day goes on.'
And the National Flood Forum charity warned that the UK remains 'reactive and not proactive' about flood risk even though flooding had become a regular pattern for the country.
Speaking to LBC's Nick Ferrari, Heather Shepherd, the charity's flood recovery specialist, said: 'Flooding has definitely increased. We see it now as a regular pattern every year.
'I still think we are quite reactive and not proactive. As soon as flodding's not in the headlines we tend to be a bit too laid back.'
Miss Shepherd also said that 'building like mad everywhere' was increasing the risk of floods, as 'a lot of [building] is on places where water had space and it no longer has. It overwhelms our drainage infrastructure.'
Meanwhile, swimmers have been urged to stay out of Cumbria's Lake Windermere because of a potentially toxic algae covering the water's surface.
While the heatwave has now technically ended after eight days on Tuesday, it remains very warm in much of the UK with highs of 22C (71.6F) in London, Brighton and Exeter today, 25C (77F) across the south on Thursday and 23C (73.4F) on Friday,
A fireman from Dorset and Wiltshire fire crew help pump some of the water out of the road with their fire engine after torrential rain and thunderstorms caused flash flooding on Tuesday
The Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue crew were successful in removing some of the flooding, allowing motorists to use the junction (pictured on Tuesday)
Vehicles drive along the very wet M25 near Swanley in Kent yesterday as heavy rain creates surface spray and reduces visibility
Tourists walk along the South Bank in London during heavy rain in the capital yesterday as the heatwave comes to an end
A couple go for a walk in the sea under an umbrella off the almost deserted beach of Weymouth in Dorset yesterday morning
Commuters walk over London Bridge on Tuesday morning as heavy rain hits the capital following the heatwave
People queue up outside Westminster Abbey during heavy rain in London yesterday as thunderstorms hit the capital
Two young women shelter under an umbrella as they walk over Millennium Bridge in London during heavy rain yesterday afternoon
A vehicle drives through a large puddle during heavy rain at Greenwich in South East London on Tuesday morning
Three people take a selfie under umbrellas as they stand on Millennium Bridge in London during heavy rain on Tuesday afternoon
People walk over London Bridge yesterday morning as heavy rain hits the capital following the heatwave
People walk through London in the rain yesterday - and while some of them came prepared with umbrellas, others did not
Flooding on rail lines near Perth in Scotland yesterday, where speed restrictions have been imposed on routes due to heavy rain
A bride and groom shelter from the rain under an umbrella during their wedding photos in Central London yesterday afternoon
Tourists wearing rain ponchos walk through Westminster yesterday during heavy rain after the prolonged dry spell
Authorities moved Yorkshire to official drought status on Tuesday, following parts of the South West, southern and central England and the East of England last week.
Christine Colvin, from the Rivers Trust, warned there is a risk that people will not take the drought seriously in the coming days, adding: 'We want people to keep this rainfall event in context and as part of the bigger picture.
'The bigger picture is that we've actually still had an incredibly dry year as well as a dry summer and it's going to take sustained rainfall to replenish our supplies. Just
