Spring weather to return to Lancashire with temperatures set to rise mid-week
Storm Dave battered Lancashire last night but temperatures could reach the mid-20s later this week.
After winds of up to 70 mph hit the county last night, temperatures are expected to rise after Easter Monday.
Greg Dewhurst, a Met Office meteorologist, said: “On Tuesday, warmer air moves in across England and Wales from the near continent through Tuesday and into Wednesday. We will see temperatures rising to the low 20s, with highs around 20C or 21C on Tuesday, and possibly 23C or 24C come Wednesday. The sunniest skies on Wednesday may be limited to south-east England, where 23 and 24 is most likely.”
Storm Dave caused road closures and train disruptions early on Easter Sunday morning, with the forecast expected to clear throughout the day. An amber wind warning covering parts of northern England, north-west Wales and southern Scotland was lifted at 3am, while three yellow warnings across parts of northern England, Scotland and Wales were lifted later in the morning.
The Met Office’s forecast for Easter Sunday said: “Storm Dave will clear northeast on Sunday morning, leaving sunshine and widespread showers across the UK. Northern areas will see the heaviest, blustery showers and feel cold, while temperatures elsewhere stay closer to average for early April.”
Before the severe amber weather warning was lifted, the Met Office had forecast “severe gales” across central and northern areas of the country overnight into Sunday. In the early hours of Sunday, Traffic Scotland warned that several major bridges had restrictions in place due to strong winds, including the Queensferry Crossing on the M90, which connects Edinburgh with Fife and the nearby Forth Road Bridge on the A9000.
The Humber Bridge linking East Yorkshire with north Lincolnshire reopened after being closed in both directions to high-sided and vulnerable vehicles early on Sunday due to strong winds, National Highways reported. Elsewhere, ScotRail confirmed emergency speed restrictions would be implemented across parts of its network, resulting in longer travel times.
Here in the north, Network Rail Manchester announced rail replacement bus services would run between Manchester Picadilly and Chester due to overnight weather conditions. As of 7am on Sunday, there were four coastal flood warnings and 32 flood alerts across England and eight coastal flood alerts in Wales. In Scotland, 12 flood warnings and eight flood alerts remained in place.
The Energy Networks Association (ENA) – which represents electricity network operators – warned of potential power cuts and issued safety advice following the weather warnings.It said in a statement on Saturday: “The storm has the potential to affect local power infrastructure, increasing the risk of a power cut and fallen power lines.
“Network operators are increasing staffing for operational teams, and moving spare equipment to where the weather is expected to be most disruptive, so it’s ready to use if needed.”