#storm-claudia

#storm-claudia

As Storm Claudia retreats to the south, high pressure to the north west will drive a cold northerly flow from the Arctic across the UK. This will bring much colder conditions than of late and, whilst generally drier than recent days, there will also be a risk of wintry hazards, such as snow and ice. There will be widespread frosts across the UK, with temperatures dipping as low as -7C in places next week, and daytime temperatures staying in single figures across the country.

Monmouth was hit by severe flooding in the early hours of Saturday (15 November), prompting South Wales Fire and Rescue to declare a major incident as the aftermath of Storm Claudia continues in Wales. The public has been urged to avoid the area completely, as the flooding is significant and routes must be kept clear to allow emergency services to reach the people who need them most, the service's area manager, Matt Jones, said.

"The journey to Holyhead was okay, a few rough bumps but I expected worse," he said. "We got pretty close to Holyhead when the captain told us the port was closed without any notice of when it would open, only that we'd have to wait for conditions to improve." Mr Reilly said the captain and crew onboard were very apologetic and even provided passengers with complimentary cabins and dinners. "Outside it was very wild looking," he added.

Storm Claudia will bring very heavy rainfall to a large swathe of central and southern England and Wales on Friday into Saturday. This rain will become slow moving and some areas could see up to a month's worth of rain in 24 hours. Much of this will fall on saturated ground, increasing the chances of flooding and contributing to the amber warnings we have issued. Within the amber warning areas, some could see in excess of 150mm accumulate during the event, with 60-80mm fairly widely.