Forecasters warn of torrential rain and strong winds with yellow warnings in place

The UK faces torrential downpours and gale force winds, with the country braced for a second drenching on Monday.

Record high temperatures of last weekend seem like a distant memory, as the Met Office warns up to 70mm of rain could fall over the highest parts of the country on Sunday - on top of already saturated land.

Yellow weather warnings are in place until 5pm, but the area has shrunk to cover just northern parts of England.

The Environment Agency currently has 28 localised flood warnings in place for England in counties including Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, Yorkshire, Hampshire, Sussex and Lincolnshire.

There are two warnings in place in Monmouthshire in Wales plus 175 alerts for possible flooding across the country.

Areas such as Devon and Cornwall could see coastal gales of up to 50mph, while between 30mm and 40mm of rain is expected to fall within the warning area over the weekend.

The weather warning has already led to the cancellation of the inaugural Regatta London race, which was due to take place on the River Thames on Sunday.

Organisers said they were unable to safely run the event due to “stormy weather” affecting the river’s water quality.

In Yorkshire, a major cycling tournament run by the Union Cycliste Internationale and Yorkshire 2019 has been diverted after consultation between the two.

Yorkshire 2019 says it considers the safety of spectators and riders as paramount and want everyone to enjoy the racing, but the conditions in the Dales puts that at risk.

Just a week ago, parts of the country were basking in 26C heat.

Alex Burkill, a meteorologist with the Met Office, said: “Today we’ve got the heaviest rain across northern England and it’s pushing its way eastward.

“In the rest of England and Wales there are showery outbreaks but we’ve probably seen the worst of the rain for these parts.

“We could see a further 30mm to 40mm over the highest ground in northern England as we go through the rest of the day.

“We’ve already seen some fairly significant rainfall and there will be further persistent rain through northern and central England and further showery outbreaks in Wales.”

There will be a brief reprieve from the rain on Sunday evening, only for it to return to much of the country on Monday.

Mr Burkill said: “Monday is going to start off pretty fine for most places, however a system is going to come in through the day reaching south-west England and Wales by 10am tomorrow morning and spreading eastwards as we go through the day.

“By evening rush hour, much of England and Wales will be pretty wet.”

A fresh yellow weather warning is due to come into force on Monday from 3pm, stretching from North Yorkshire down to the south of Wales.

England and Wales will be hit by the heavy rain on Monday, while Scotland and Northern Ireland will escape with a fairly dry day.

Police forces in England and Wales have warned drivers to take care on slippery and potentially treacherous roads, and rail passengers are advised to check their route for delays before travelling.

On Saturday, a mudslide in North Yorkshire caused by heavy rain blocked train lines between Lancaster and Skipton.

The bad weather follows on from an unsettled Friday, which saw a water spout form near the Isle of Scalpay in the Outer Hebrides, off the west coast of Scotland.