UK weather forecast: Storm Callum is bringing torrential rains to lash Britain, Met Office warns

Storm Callum will smash into the British Isles on Friday, bringing a month’s worth of rain in just two days.

The Met Office is warning that the weather system currently gathering over the Atlantic will hit south Wales especially hard and has issued an amber warning to locals.

Callum will be the third named storm of the season and will sweep in gusts of wind up to 80mph in coastal areas.

Greg Dewhurst, a forecaster with the Met Office, said the main concern was about how much rain was expected to fall throughout Wales and parts of the West Country.

“We could see as much as 160mm rainfall, not far off a month’s worth, over two days,” he said.

“There is the risk of some serious flooding through the Brecon Beacons and there is likely to be destruction across the area.”

The first two named storms to hit Britain this season, Storm Ali and Storm Bronagh, swept through the UK last month, leaving two people dead and roads blocked by fallen trees because of the 100mph winds and strong downpours.

An amber warning means road and rail closures and power cuts are more likely. There are also increased risks to life and property.

Natural Resources Wales (NRW) said that its emergency response teams were already at work checking flood defences and building more temporary protections.

Gary White, NRW’s duty tactical manager, said: “Our teams are doing all they can to reduce the risk for communities, but if there is flooding we want to make sure people are doing all they can to keep themselves safe.”

Autumn means that the torrential rains are more likely to cause widespread flooding, the forecaster added.

Fallen leaves block drains making it easier for the heavy winds and strong rains to turn into a deluge.

Ireland’s forecaster, Met Éireann, has also issued its own Status Orange – the second-highest warning level – across all coastal regions in Ireland because of Callum. The storm is coinciding with high tides and could cause flooding in communities close to the sea.

The agency has warned that anyone living along the coast in exposed areas should move away for the duration of the gales.

Some reports suggested the bad weather will continue into next week when the remnants of Hurricane Michael, currently leaving a trail of devastation across Florida, crosses the Atlantic and hits the UK.

But Mr Dewhurst said that most computer models were predicting the storm will actually make landfall in Spain, Portugal or France.

“At the moment it has been absolutely crazy but as it crosses across the Atlantic over the next few days it will wind down and become a low pressure system,” he said.

“There’s a lot of uncertainty; at the moment most models take Michael towards Iberia but there are a few that take it later on Monday towards parts of the UK. But it won’t be anything like it was in America, just bringing some wet and windy weather.”

www.independent.co.uk