Flood alerts as Storm Clodagh gales give way to heavy rain

Gale-force winds are making way for heavy rain, putting parts of the country on flood alert, as Britain feels little respite from the unsettled weather.

Almost a month's worth of rain is expected to fall in parts of Wales, the Met Office said.

The Environment Agency has issued yellow flood warnings for Wales and the north of England for the next two days, with between 3 and 5 inches of rain expected in some areas.

The average for Wales for the month of November is 6.3 inches, said forecaster Marco Petagna.

"We're going to see three-quarters of that fall in just one or two days," he said.

He added: "It is generally going to remain unsettled across the UK over the next couple of days."

There are three flood warnings - when the Environment Agency expects flooding to occur - issued for the River Ouse in north Yorkshire, Keswick Campsite in Cumbria and Felixstowe Ferry & Bawdsey Quay in Suffolk.

Northern Ireland and southern Scotland will see wintry showers this morning, leading to slushy conditions. There could be some snowfall across northern England, but only on higher ground.

Gusts of up to 50mph are forecast to hit coastal areas of the south-west, but the winds are expected to ease off into this evening.

Storm Clodagh brought gales of 70mph on Sunday, leading to fallen trees and travel disruption across the UK, and a number of local authorities were forced to cancel their Christmas lights switch-on celebrations.

The Met Office has warned of a risk of "localised disruption to travel" today due to wind speeds.

Despite the wind and rain, southern parts of the UK will see reasonably mild temperatures for the time of year, Mr Petagna said.

He said: "It's quite unusual to see such a big contrast across the UK for this time of year. We're likely to see temperatures down to 3C (37.4F) in northern parts, which is below the average for this time, while southern parts could see highs of 13C (55.4F), which is quite mild."