London weather: Heavy rain and 50mph winds set to batter capital as Storm Nelson hits UK

Spring weather Mar 12th 2024

Heavy rain and winds of up to 50mph are to hit London this week as Storm Nelson batters the UK.

The Met Office has issued weather warnings for southern England and Northern Ireland on Thursday as the storm, named by Spanish weather forecasters, is due to hit just days before the Easter weekend.

Parts of southern England are expected to be hit with winds as high as 70mph as the storm rolls in.

London has avoided the weather warnings, but is to be lashed by heavy rain from 2am and throughout the early morning on Thursday.

The heavy rain is then expected to pick up again around 11am and continue for several hours before making way for lighter showers, the Met Office predicts.

BBC Weather predicts high winds will also hit the capital around midday on Thursday, reaching top speeds of 50mph around 5pm, before dropping off around 9pm.

Following a drizzly Thursday afternoon and evening, the wet conditions are also due to continue on Friday, with a mix of light and heavy showers.

The Met Office predicts some moderately high winds could remain until Friday afternoon.

Meanwhile a yellow wind warning is in place across the south and south-west coast of England, from 7am to 6pm on Thursday.

The Met Office warns: “Gusts of 50mph are expected quite widely, while some exposed coastal spots may experience gusts of 60 to 70 mph, with large waves also likely.

“Strong winds and large coastal waves may lead to hazardous conditions.”

The alert stretches from the Eastbourne area in East Sussex, across the entire south coast to Penzance, also taking in the Isle of Wight and some of the north Cornish coast.

A yellow rain warning is also in place across the eastern part of Northern Ireland, from 7am to 5pm on Thursday.

The Met Office warns: “Heavy rain may bring impacts to travel and infrastructure”.

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