Met Office expands weather warning for rain in Dorset

A yellow weather alert has been issued for 9pm on Wednesday, September 4 and has now been extended until the end of Friday, September 6. 

It was initially due to end at 9am on Thursday, September 5. 

The Met Office said: “Outbreaks of heavy rain are expected widely across southern England and southern Wales on Friday.  

“Heavy rain will be persistent for some and may be particularly heavy in a few places.  

“Rainfall totals of 15-30 mm are expected widely, however, the wettest areas are likely to see 40-60 mm through the whole of Friday with a lower likelihood of a few areas seeing as much as 75-100 mm.  

“This heavy rain follows on from an expected wet day across some similar areas on Thursday which will increase the likelihood of impacts.  

“There is also the potential for further spells of heavy rain across parts of the south over the weekend.” 

Flooding is possible, the Met Office added, and spray and sudden flooding could lead to difficult driving conditions and some road closures. 

Meanwhile, the Met Office recently said the UK had experienced its coldest summer since 2015 with mean temperatures being 0.22C below the long-term meteorological average. 

Met Office scientist Emily Carlisle said: “I don’t think it will surprise anyone that this summer has been cooler than average for the UK.  

“Mean temperatures in both June and July were below average, with temperatures in August only slightly above.  

“This was largely due to northerly winds bringing cold Arctic air to the UK in June and July, while August saw an increase in westerly winds bringing slightly warmer Atlantic air. 

“Although we had some heatwaves and bursts of hot weather, these were fairly short-lived and conditions across the whole three months were pretty unsettled.  

“August was the wettest month of the summer, with some places in Scotland experiencing double their average summer rainfall during the month and Storm Lilian bringing strong winds and heavy rain at the end.”