One record tumbles as there's a month's worth of rain in a little more than a day

Storm clouds gathering at March in Cambridgeshire on Saturday 11 October 2014. Credit: Peter Baker

It's been a wet start to the week and a wet start to October in the Anglia region. After only a third of the usual rain fell on the region during September, this month is attempting to redress the balance.

Wattisham airfield near Ipswich in Suffolk has had a weather station keeping records since 1959. In all that time, there has been no wetter day in October than in the 24 hours to 10am on Monday when there was 34.6 mm (1.4 inches) of rain.

More rain came after that and Wattisham was among the wettest places in Britain on Monday recording 45.8 mm (1.8 inches) of rain in the 24 hours to 6pm. The average monthly rainfall for the whole of October at the site is 65 mm (2.6 inches).

Wattisham also had the dubious honour of receiving nearly a week's worth of rain in just a single hour with 14.4 mm falling at 9am.

Rainfall in the 12 hours until 4pm on Monday 13 October 2014

  • 35.8 mm in Wattisham, Suffolk

  • 28.4 mm in Charsfield, Suffolk

  • 25.6 mm in Cavendish, Suffolk

  • 23.4 mm in Cromer, Norfolk

  • 22.4 mm in Higham near Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk

  • 22.0 mm in Cambridge

  • 22.0 mm in Weybourne, Norfolk

  • 21.2 mm in Santon Downham, Suffolk

  • 20.6 mm at Monks Wood near Sawtry, Cambs

  • 20.6 mm at Houghton Hall in Norfolk

  • 18.2 mm in Marham, Norfolk

A stunning image of a lightning strike captured at Blood Hill wind farm near Hemsby, Norfolk. Credit: Damon Cooke

The rain on Monday was down to an area of low pressure moving north into the UK bringing bands of rain circulating around it.

It follows an evening of intense thunderstorms on Saturday evening in Norfolk which produced torrential downpours, half-inch hailstones and a spectacular lightning show.

A wet and breezy day in the Anglia region. Credit: PA

Holbeach in Lincolnshire was hit by wind gusts of 49mph, but a spokesman for the Met Office said the strong winds were fairly isolated.

The wet weather has caused travel problems for many, with Greater Anglia reporting delays of up to 15 minutes on trains between Ipswich and Peterborough and Ipswich and Cambridge due to flooding on the line.

Meanwhile the AA reported more than 30 flooding-related call-outs today, which were mainly across London, south east England and East Anglia.