WIREDGOV

We can all expect to see spells of wet and windy weather this week as deep low pressure systems move towards the UK from the Atlantic.

After the recent cold, settled and relatively dry weather, a strong jet stream will help develop and drive low pressure systems towards the UK later this week. These will bring strong winds, with possible stormy conditions combined with periods of heavy rain from Thursday.

At the moment, there remains a lot of  uncertainty over the locations most likely to be affected and the timing. A National Severe Weather Warning for wind has been issued for Friday but at this stage, because of the uncertainty around the level of impact it could bring, the storm has not been named.

Alex Deakin, meteorologist and presenter, yesterday explained more about how the strong jet stream could lead to stormy weather later this week in the video below:

Richard Young, Deputy Chief Meteorologist, said: “An unsettled, possibly stormy spell of weather will affect the UK later this week, with southern and southwestern parts of the country most likely to be affected. Severe gales are possible along with heavy rain at times. There are a few days to go before the severe weather and the forecast could change so it’s best to keep up to date with the latest weather forecast and warnings.”

RAC Traffic Watch spokesman Rod Dennis said: “We’ve seen a return this week to milder, wetter conditions for many of us – and with more rain forecast in some areas over the next few days motorists are likely to encounter standing water on the roads.

“Standing water represents a serious risk to drivers. The golden rule is if you don’t know how deep the water is, do not attempt to drive through it. Where possible we recommend avoiding pools of water on the road altogether to cut the risk of aquaplaning.

“Modern vehicles are better equipped to deal with bad weather than ever before, but they are still by no means waterproof. You are risking expensive damage, and putting yourself and passengers at risk, if you drive into water that is of an unknown depth.”

Although it’s not unusual to see vigorous low pressure systems moving across the country at this time of year, so far this winter there have been relatively few of them, especially when compared to last winter. So far this season we have named three storms: Angus, Barbara and Conor. The next storm name on the “Name our Storms” list is Doris.

Looking ahead, the weather looks set to remain changeable into the first week of February with frontal systems bringing wet and windy weather at times with some brief calmer, drier and brighter spells. Temperatures will most probably be around average for the time of year but with some colder interludes. Further into February there are some signs of a return to more settled, drier and perhaps colder conditions, but the forecast could well change.

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