Eight-hour thunderstorm warning issued for North Wales

A yellow alert for thunderstorms has been issued for northeast Wales over the Bank Holiday weekend. The Met Office said “low-moving heavy showers and thunderstorms may cause flooding and disruption in places” on Sunday (May 26).

The warning mainly covers the Midlands and parts of northern England but it applies to Wales too, affecting Wrexham, Flintshire, Denbighshire and Powys. It’s currently slated to remain in place for eight hours, from midday to 8pm.

Although Conwy, Gwynedd and Anglesey are not covered by the Met Office warning, thunderstorms are forecast here too on Sunday afternoon. It’s the latest batch of thunderstorms to have been forecast for Wales, some of which have failed to materialised given their unpredictable nature. Nevertheless, the Met Office is urging people to be prepared.

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It said: “Spray and sudden flooding could lead to difficult driving conditions and some road closures. There is a small chance that homes and businesses could be flooded quickly, with damage to some buildings from floodwater and lightning strikes, and a small chance that some communities become temporarily cut off by flooded roads.

“Where flooding or lightning strikes occur, there is a chance of delays and some cancellations to train and bus services. There is a slight chance that power cuts could occur and other services to some homes and businesses could be lost.”

A mixed weather bag was already forecast for the Bank Holiday weekend in Wales. While Saturday is set to remain mainly dry, an Atlantic low will swing around from the southwest on Saturday night. Sign up now for the latest news on the North Wales Live Whatsapp community

Met Office deputy chief meteorologist Mark Sidaway said: “The Bank Holiday weekend will see some sunny spells and it will feel quite pleasant in the sunshine for many on Saturday in particular.

“Sunday and Bank Holiday Monday will likely see a return to sunshine and showers. Low pressure to the west is likely to push fronts into the UK on Sunday, these tending to break up and turn more showery in nature as they do so.

"We are likely to see some heavy, possibly thundery showers on both days, but there should still be some dry spells in between, and in any sunshine it will feel pleasantly warm.” Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox

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