Rain and wind warnings issued as warm air mixes with Hurricane Ernesto

Yellow weather warnings for rain and wind have been issued across the UK for Thursday as humid summer air mixes with the remains of Hurricane Ernesto.

Up to 6in (150mm) of rain and strong winds of up to 60mph could affect some areas over a 24-hour period, with flooding, dangerous coastal conditions and power cuts possible, the Met Office said.

The forecaster has issued a yellow warning for rain for the western half of Scotland , covering the Highlands , south-west Scotland and Strathclyde, from 11am on Wednesday to 8am on Thursday.

Separate yellow warnings for wind covering northern Wales and northern England , including both Cumbria and Northumberland, have been issued from 1am to 9am on Thursday.

Hurricane Ernesto ripped through the North Atlantic last week, but has now weakened to a tropical storm after leaving hundreds of thousands of people in Puerto Rico and Bermuda without power.

Met Office spokesman Stephen Dixon said: “Through today and into tomorrow, we have got some potentially impactful weather for parts of the west of Scotland and north-west England, with some winds and rain being the main hazards that we’re keeping an eye on.”

A band of rain moving in from the west will become slow-moving in parts of western Scotland on Wednesday, with 3in-4in (75mm-100mm) forecast for some areas and possibly up to 6in (150mm) over higher ground, the forecaster said.

Strong winds of around 50mph, “associated with” the rain, will blow fairly widely in the areas covered by the warning, while gusts of around 60mph could occur in exposed locations.

Mr Dixon said: “There is a chance of some disruption, particularly to travel, and particularly dangerous conditions in some coastal areas as well, with the chance of beach material being thrown on to seafronts, and some coastal roads having some trickier conditions.”

The forecaster said Hurricane Ernesto is “part of the mix” influencing the wet and windy spell but is not causing it on its own.

He added: “What’s happening is (the hurricane) is getting swept up into other systems and it’s bringing some extra moisture and pepping up some of those rainfall totals, and we’ve obviously got some gusty winds as well, but as an individual feature it is largely broken down.”

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency has issued 21 flood alerts, meaning flooding is expected, across the Orkney and the Western Isles, and coastal areas in Moray and Dumfries and Galloway.

The Environment Agency has also issued two flood warnings – for Hornsea in the East Riding of Yorkshire and the Wye Estuary in Monmouthshire, near the historic Tintern Abbey.

Traffic will be diverted from the A83 Rest And Be Thankful road to the Old Military Road in Argyll and Bute from 7pm on Wednesday to ensure the safety of road users, with landslides previously affecting the area, road maintenance firm BEAR Scotland said.

More than a dozen ferry services on the Scottish west coast have been cancelled or disrupted due to the conditions.

Lighter rain is also expected to fall in Northern Ireland throughout Wednesday, while largely dry conditions will cover southern and central areas of England with spells of hazy sunshine, the forecaster said.

The band of rain will move eastwards throughout the day on Thursday, bringing sunny spells and blustery showers in the North and West, and the strong winds will ease through the afternoon.

Unsettled weather in north-western areas of the country and generally drier conditions further south and east are set to continue into the bank holiday weekend, although showers are still likely in the latter and temperatures are expected to be slightly below average, the Met Office said.