Heavy rain and 75mph winds to batter parts of UK - as weather warning issued

Heavy rain and winds of up to 75mph are set to batter the UK this week, affecting southern England late on Wednesday, spreading northeast, and likely to persist until late on Thursday.

A yellow weather warning for rain covers most of southern England, the East Midlands, parts of Wales and Yorkshire and is in place all of Thursday until 9pm, the Met Office said. "A powerful jet stream will drive a deep low-pressure system across the UK on Thursday, bringing heavy rain and strong winds to many areas," the forecaster wrote in a post on X.

Those within the affected regions have been warned by the weather service to expect heavy rainfall from Wednesday evening, with up 50mm in some areas by early Thursday morning. Check the weather forecast where you are Some areas, particularly North Devon, Cornwall and in the east of England, could exceed this amount of rain, the Met Office added.

For the majority of the yellow alert area, gusts of up to 55mph are expected with 65mph possible near coasts. Strong winds may lead to power cuts, transport disruption and damage to buildings with a small chance of injuries and danger to life caused by large waves and beach material being thrown on to seafronts and coastal roads, the forecaster warned.

Another yellow alert for wind on Thursday covers southwest England and parts of Wales, including Somerset, Devon, Cornwall, Swansea and Pembrokeshire. Read more:What are weather warnings and how do they work?Why the weather has been gloomy in the UK recently Gusts of up to 45mph are expected widely within this area, while winds of up to 60mph could be reached along exposed coasts and headlands, according to the forecaster.

"The low is deepening as it crosses the UK, it's likely to bring a swathe of strong winds as well, gales around southern and eastern coasts, the risk of 60mph gusts in some exposed spots, perhaps even a touch more in places," said Met Office meteorologist Aidan McGivern. Before Wednesday, conditions are expected to be a "mix of bright spells and showers.