Cold Scandinavian air influences UK

A dense pool of cold air over Scandinavia is exerting a strong influence on the UK weather as weather systems from the Atlantic try to extend their influence. In this set up this week, rain will extend across southern and western parts of the UK, while snow is likely to remain a hazard along the leading edge as it ‘bumps’ into colder air further north and east.

National Severe Weather Warning

Several National Severe Weather warnings have been issued.

Met Office Chief Meteorologist, Neil Armstrong, said: “A weather front moves north eastwards across the UK bringing rain which turns to snow as it pushes further north and meets with colder air. This system has prompted a number of warnings including a rain warning for Northern Ireland, while snow warnings will be in force for parts of northern England and Scotland.

“In locations higher than 200m across northern England and southern Scotland we could expect to see around 2-5cm of snowfall, but areas of similar elevation north of Glasgow and Edinburgh could see up to 20cm of snow.”

Rainfall amounts will generally be lower than last week, with many areas seeing 20-30mm. However, 50mm is once again possible in isolated spots across parts of the western Pennines, Greater Manchester, and North Wales, and rivers are still high in this area meaning further impacts could be possible.

The Environment Agency

Neil Davies, Flood Duty Manager at the Environment Agency, said: “Despite the treacherous conditions, we protected more than 49,000 homes and businesses across England from flooding during Storm Christoph, but with river catchments now extremely wet and sensitive to further rainfall on saturated ground, we have to remain vigilant to further flooding this winter.

“Our teams are out on the ground checking defences and clearing grilles and screens to make sure we are prepared for the next band of wet weather.”

Keep up to date

Check your local flood risk and sign up for free flood warnings in England via Gov.uk or follow @EnvAgency on Twitter, in Wales via National Resources Wales and in Scotland via SEPA.

Saturday weather

On Saturday a further band of rain – linked to Storm Justine - will affect southern England and South Wales. There is a possibility of snow on the leading edge of this system, especially over South Western hills and the higher ground of southern Wales. Further north clearer conditions will dominate, with temperatures remaining low and with possibly extensive frosts by night.

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