Heavy rain has caused flooding across southern England and Wales, with some roads impassable and train services disrupted.
Much of south England, including Kent, Sussex, Devon and Somerset, as well as parts of south Wales, have been under a yellow warning for rain since 6pm on Tuesday. It comes days after the disruption caused by Storm Babet.
Southampton and the Isle of Wight were under an amber warning on Wednesday morning for heavy rain that could also cause power cuts.
As much as 70-80mm is possible in some parts of the Isle of Wight and areas along the Bristol Channel and the English Channel could see 50-60mm of “very localised” rainfall. Other parts of the south coast of England and Wales are likely to receive 15-25mm.
Craig Snell, from the Met Office, said the weather was more “typical” for October than that of Storm Babet, which was “long gone”. He said: “It could be a bit of a tricky rush hour, first thing, but the rain will move out of the way and it will certainly be nowhere near the scale of what we’ve seen further north.”
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A yellow warning for fog in parts of east and north England and Wales is also in place. The Met Office predicted it would be “dense in places” and lead to further disruption.
At least seven people are thought to have died in incidents related to Storm Babet, while hundreds were forced to flee their homes in Scotland and northeast England. About 1,250 properties in England were flooded during the storm, the Environment Agency (EA) said.
Daily rainfall records for October were broken in 13 areas last week, including in Suffolk, South Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, Wiltshire, Kincardineshire, in the northeast of Scotland, North Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, Northumberland, Derbyshire and Humberside, the Met Office said.
Rainfall was heavier than expected in some areas, with the east of England receiving only a yellow warning ahead of the storm.
Thérèse Coffey, the environment secretary, blamed rain “coming from the wrong direction” for the destruction caused by Storm Babet and said the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs would conduct a rapid review, alongside the EA.
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The Met Office has also said it will be undertaking a full review of its forecasts and warnings.
