UK weather: Britons warned power cuts possible as rain alert issued by Met Office

‘Short-term loss of power possible,’ Met Office tells parts of UK

The Met Office has warned heavy rain and winds could cause power cuts in areas of the UK as it issued a weather warning.

Forecasters said travel disruption could hit southwest England, southern Wales and parts of Northern Ireland on Thursday morning.

The yellow weather warning is in place across Cornwall and Devon, as well as parts of Wiltshire and Somerset. Cardiff and Swansea are also covered.

The alert - which runs between 3am and 8am - says a “short gust” of heavy rain and gusty winds may cause disruption.

This includes delays to road travel caused by surface water on the roads, as well as bus and train journeys taking longer than usual.

“Some short-term loss of power and other services is possible, with perhaps a few tree branches down too,” the Met Office adds.

Belfast and other eastern areas in Northern Ireland are affected by a separate rain warning on Thursday morning.

This alert warns heavy downpours could lead to flooding and travel disruption between 5am and 10am.

Rain is expected to move northeast on Wednesday, with blustery showers then entering western and southern areas.

The Met Office has issued a weather warning for rain and wind (Getty Images)

The Met Office said the weather is expected to remain “unsettled” throughout the end of the week with more wet and windy conditions.

Looking forwards, Grahame Madge from the Met Office told The Independent: “There is a likelihood of temperatures coming down for around the beginning of December.”

He said temperatures had recently been around or above average, a spell of more settled weather - which could bring “the odd frost” - was likely.

“From the first of December we are entering meteorological winter which would not be unusual to get a dusting of snow here and there,” he said.

“But there is, as I say, nothing in the forecast at the moment that would suggest there is going to be any snow - significant or otherwise - for areas outside the highest uplands of the UK.”

The UK had a rainy start to the week, with flooding expected in some areas on Tuesday, despite downpours expected to ease.

High river levels from “persistent rainfall” were expected to lead to flooding just outside Leicester and in rural Nottinghamshire, the Environment Agency said, warning nearby residents to take precautions.

The Environment Agency had 79 other alerts warning flooding was possible across England on Tuesday.