A heavy rain warning has been issued for Cumbria.
The Met Office has issued a yellow warning this weekend from 3pm on Saturday December 13 until 6pm on Sunday December 14.
It said periods of heavy rain may lead to travel disruption and some flooding across the county.
The weather forecaster added that accumulations of 30mm to 50mm could develop quite widely and in excess of 100mm across some high ground.
What should I expect?
- Spray and flooding on roads probably making journey times longer, with bus and train services probably affected
- There is a small chance that some communities will become cut off by flooded roads
- Some interruption to power supplies and other services likely
- Flooding of a few homes and businesses is possible with a small chance of more significant flooding causing damage to some buildings
Why should I care about weather warnings?
Weather warnings are issued to let people know what weather is in store for their area and what its impact could be. The Met Office is the UK’s official weather service and is responsible for issuing weather warnings to the public.
There are three main levels of weather warning:
- Yellow – which asks people to be prepared for disruption
- Amber – which asks people to change plans that could be impacted by the weather and take action to protect themselves and their property
- Red – which is issued for weather that poses a danger to life and asks people to immediately take direct action to keep themselves and others safe from impacts of the weather
Yellow and amber warnings represent a range of impact levels and likelihoods. This means it is important to read each warning to know what level of impact to expect in your local area – and how likely those impacts are to occur.
The Met Office began issuing impact-based warnings in 2011 – which means that warnings are issued when the weather may have an impact on people’s day to day lives.
Previous to this, warnings were issued to the public when certain weather thresholds or levels were reached.
Impact-based warnings take multiple factors into account – these include time of day, if it may impact traffic, time of year, if the weather is unusual, if there are any seasonal events taking place and if the area is well equipped to deal with the weather.
Each warning level is designed to help people take steps to minimise the chances of disruption in their lives.
