Heatwave continues but storms ahead

Forecasters say much of Britain will be hot and humid on Monday with a chance of thundery showers later Much of the UK continues to roast in heatwave weather courtesy of the “Spanish plume” of warm air from the Costa beaches, with a day’s grace expected before thunderstorms end the summery spell. The plume’s traditional downside of haze from Saharan sand has cut the weekend’s soaring temperatures in some places, but nearly everyone outdoors, from Andy Murray at Wimbledon to Glastonbury festival’s clean-up teams, can expect an exceptionally pleasant day. The heat has brought some disruption, however, with speed restrictions imposed on rail services between East Anglia and London because of the risk of electric cables overheating. A spokesman for Network Rail said some trains would be slowed from 90mph to 60mph during peak temperatures on the main line to Norwich, where renewal work on overhead wires is also under way. The earliest storms may reach the UK on Monday evening, according to forecasters, but such predictions have proved premature and pessimistic so far during the mini-heatwave, which saw highs of 28C (83F) on Sunday. Predicted showers did not materialise, except in a handful of outlying places. Before the sunshine goes, the Met Office expects to see temperatures reach 31C (88F) in London and along the hinterland of the Channel coast, with cloud cover pushed well towards the Scottish border. The plume is continuing to flow to the west and north, sheltering most of the British Isles in the crook of a gentle curve and warding off colder temperatures to the north. The pattern is expected to see Murray’s match with the French player Richard Gasquet for a place in the last 16 men at Wimbledon coincide with the hottest day of the year so far. Forecaster Andy Ratcliffe, of MeteoGroup, suggested that the 31C figure, if reached, would be pretty much centred over the famous courts. “We’re looking at that sort of high in the London area, with much of the rest of England being hot and humid again. There is the chance of scattered thundery showers developing later, and they could turn into major local downpours where they occur. Further north-east, temperatures are expected to be fresher as the day goes on, with occasional bursts of rain. A gradual weakening in the plume effect is likely to allow wetter and slightly colder weather to move from Scotland into northern England and possibly Wales. “The remaining parts of Scotland and Northern Ireland will be mainly dry but fresher than Sunday,” said Ratcliffe. “On Tuesday we will see the remaining hot and humid conditions clearing to leave all areas fresher for the rest of the week, with scattered showers.” London is expected to see a particularly rapid drop in temperature on Tuesday, but the weather will still be pleasant at a predicted 24C (75F). Umbrellas and the Centre Court roof are likely to be in action, however, with almost certain thunderstorms and heavy rain at times. Paul Mott, of MeteoGroup, said: “By Wednesday the heatwave will definitely be over. If anything it will be a bit colder than average, 20C (68F) in London and down to 15C (59F) elsewhere.” Monday’s Mediterranean aspect to urban parks and beaches the length of England’s coastline is expected to return to more sober conditions, even cardigan weather. Seaside visitors suffered some disappointment at the weekend, with temperatures lowered by water still cool from the winter and spring. In Brighton the maximum temperature had trouble getting over 19C (66F), although it was far hotter 20 miles further north, inland. The Met Office said cooler weather would persist until next weekend, but most of the UK would be fine and largely dry once the post-plume thunderstorms had passed on. A spokeswoman said: “Many areas will see generally light winds, but winds may become strong at times across the far north-west. Temperatures will be around average for most parts, but slightly below-average temperatures are likely towards the north-west.” Weather Martin Wainwright guardian.co.uk

Posted by on June 27, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.