Heavy rain battered Wales on Monday, triggering an amber weather warning and prompting authorities to issue danger to life alerts as mountainous regions recorded nearly half of December's average rainfall in just hours. The Met Office amber warning for south Wales remained in force until 9pm Monday.
By 3pm Monday, some areas in north Wales had already logged up to 83mm of rain. Natural Resources Wales issued ten flood warnings requiring immediate action and 52 flood alerts across the country. England faced six flood warnings and 57 alerts, mainly across northern, western and southwestern regions.
The Met Office forecast widespread rainfall of 20-40mm across affected regions, with 60-80mm expected over high ground like Bannau Brycheiniog. Some locations could see 100-120mm. Strong southwesterly winds accompanied the downpours, with gales possible around coasts.
Danger to Life Warnings
A Natural Resources Wales spokeswoman warned: «There is a risk of significant impacts, including danger to life, and all communities in Wales are urged to check their flood risk.»
She added: «This comes just weeks after Storm Claudia, which caused severe flooding in Monmouth, and our thoughts are with those recently affected. Surface water flooding is widely expected and may cause serious travel disruption. Driving conditions are likely to be hazardous throughout the day, including during rush hours.»
The severe conditions forced train cancellations between Llandudno and Blaenau Ffestiniog in north Wales, and between Swansea and Shrewsbury. The Britannia Bridge in north Wales faced restrictions due to high winds.
Richard Preece from Natural Resources Wales urged caution: «We want to remind people to keep away from swollen riverbanks and not to drive or walk through flood waters as you don't know what lies beneath.»
20-Day Deluge Forecast
Weather expert Jim Dale from British Weather Services warned the current rainfall marks the start of an extended wet period. He said: «The big one at the moment is the rain, and it's starting today. Going forward, the next 20 days looks to be predominantly Atlantic driven, low pressure driven, associated frontal systems within those low pressures and copious amounts of rain, particularly for western areas.»
Dale predicted more amber and yellow warnings could follow, with potentially even a red warning if Atlantic low pressures intensify. The wet spell is forecast to continue until around December 20, when colder weather may arrive.
The heavy rain also triggered 15 sewage alerts across beauty spots in Cornwall as overflows discharged into coastal waters within 48 hours of Monday afternoon.
Exceptionally Wet Autumn
The current deluge follows an already sodden autumn that saw UK rainfall 20% above the long-term average. Northern Ireland experienced its third wettest autumn on record.
Met Office senior scientist Mike Kendon noted: «The UK rainfall total for autumn 2025 (403.4mm) is easily more than spring and summer combined (340.4mm).» He explained: «We've perhaps noticed the unsettled autumn weather all-the-more, because of the marked contrast from the prolonged spells of warm, dry, sunny weather we came to expect during spring and summer.»
The saturated ground and swollen rivers from autumn's three named storms - Amy, Benjamin and Claudia - have heightened flooding risks from the current rainfall. The Met Office warned of increased landslide chances on both natural and infrastructure slopes.
Gradual Improvement Expected
Met Office forecaster Dan Stroud said conditions would ease overnight into Tuesday. He explained: «It's been a bit of a wet start to meteorological winter with generally a cloudy picture right across the country. (There have been) outbreaks of rain, some locally heavy and persistent, and also some strong and gusty winds. But conditions will gradually improve as we move into the overnight period – the cloud (and) the rain gradually will start to move eastwards and start to settle out in the small hours of Tuesday morning with clear skies. It's definitely going to be an improvement into the second half of the night.»
However, Stroud warned further unsettled conditions would return in coming days. Weather maps suggest snow could affect parts of Scotland and northern England between December 5-14, particularly over higher ground.
Note: This article was created with Artificial Intelligence (AI).
