Heavy showers and blustery winds expected this weekend
Heavy showers across the UK, which left one motorist stranded on Saturday morning, are set to continue through the weekend, the Met Office has said.
Floodwater on the roads caused chaos in Leicestershire, where firefighters rescued one driver using an inflatable sled in the early hours of Saturday morning.
The deluge is set to continue for most areas in the UK – with rain showers, blustery gales and spots of sunshine forecast for the weekend.
The Environment Agency has issued 13 flood warnings, where flooding is expected, and 130 flood alerts, for areas where flooding is likely, for Saturday.
Up early on Saturday morning? It's a mixed bag of #sunshine and #showers, here's the forecast 👇 pic.twitter.com/JPIn1RjaMU
— Met Office (@metoffice) December 13, 2019
Temperatures will also be dropping and a “blustery weekend” lies ahead, according to Met Office meteorologist Greg Dewhurst.
Mr Dewhurst said: “Anyone who is out Christmas shopping will have to wrap up warmly.
“Over the high ground of northern England and Scotland, some places may have a covering of snow.
“Temperatures for most places will be between 3C (37.4F) and 7C (44.6F), with maximum temperatures of 10C (50F) in the South East where the best of the sunshine will be.
“We are also looking at wind gusts of 35 to 40mph.”
It has been a wetter week across England compared to last week, especially in the north-west. The majority of rivers that we report on are classed as normal or higher for flow for the time of year. https://t.co/AIYaGCGSI8#rainandriverdatapic.twitter.com/uAJWgUiRIz
— Environment Agency (@EnvAgency) December 12, 2019
In Leicestershire, a driver became stranded in floodwater and had to be rescued from his car in the early hours of Saturday morning.
Firefighters used an inflatable sled to pull him from the floodwater on Watery Gate Lane, Thurlaston, at 4.05am.
His Fiat 500 remains partially submerged in the water as he arranges its recovery, according to a spokesperson for Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service.
Watery Gate Lane is notorious for flooding, and at least 19 people needed rescuing from the road between 2014 and 2018, along with several more this year.
The local authority, Blaby District Council, said it wanted to install gates to stop drivers using the road when water levels are high earlier this month.
