Storm Babet is expected to hit the UK this week, bringing a month’s worth of rain in just 24 hours.
A weather warning has been issued for a large portion of the UK, stretching from Cambridge in the southeast to East Renfrewshire in Scotland. Up to 100mm of rain is anticipated on Friday, but the storm will arrive two days sooner.
The wet and windy weather is expected to be at its worst on Thursday, but the warnings start on Wednesday and last all the way through the weekend, until Saturday morning.
Babet is the season’s second named storm, and the Met Office has warned that it might have serious consequences for the country.
Flooding and disruption might occur across large swaths of the UK as a result of extremely heavy rain. The East of England, the North East, Yorkshire, the East Midlands, and sections of eastern Northern Ireland, as well as much of Scotland, have all been issued with yellow weather warnings.
The first Met Office weather warning for the four-day storm will be issued at 6 a.m. tomorrow, focusing on Northern Ireland, with Antrim, Armagh, and Down counties all falling inside the yellow warning zone.
The weather warning will be in place from 9pm and last all the way to the weekend with the north and north east bearing the brunt of the stormy weather. All warnings are currently forecast to come to an end on Saturday with the last ending on midday.
“The heaviest rainfall is more likely to occur over Angus and southeast Grampian, although even lower lying areas could see unusually heavy rainfall during this period.”
“Widely 70-100 mm of rain is likely to fall, but some upland areas may see as much as 150-200 mm of rain through this period.
“Strong southeasterly winds are likely to accompany heavy rainfall which may exacerbate impacts.”