Frost and heavy rain to hit on Remembrance weekend as the mercury plunges to an icy -6C overnight – and the south is STILL battling storm chaos with flooding and power outages

The Met Office has warned that ‘winter is knocking on the door’ as Britons prepared to battle frost and heavy rain this Remembrance weekend. 

After the mercury plunged to an icy -6C overnight, the lowest temperature of autumn thus far, forecasters have warned that temperatures will remain in the single-digits all weekend.

The big chill comes as storms and torrential rain last night caused impassable floods and left hundreds of households without power.

There are two flood warnings and eight flood alerts currently in force across the region, with the Met predicting rain and blustery showers will hit again at the start of the work week.

Forecasters say that today will be mainly dry and bright with lots of sunshine. However, there will be showers and spells of rain across southern England and the far north and east of Scotland

Storms and torrential rain last night caused impassable floods and left hundreds of households without power. Pictured: Flooding on the A370 in Backwell

Scott’s View, the viewpoint near Melrose in the Scottish Borders, overlooking the valley of the River Tweed this morning

Much of the UK woke up to single-digit temperatures this morning, with some residents in Scotland battling frost.

This morning the mercury fell to -6.3 in Altnaharra, a small hamlet in the Highlands, marking the coldest temperature of autumn.

After a chilly start, forecasters say that today will be mainly dry and bright with lots of sunshine. However, there will be showers and spells of rain across southern England and the far north and east of Scotland.  

It is likely that light showers will develop across coastal areas today and it will be quite breezy in the south.

‘Showers will become increasingly confined to northern and western coasts leaving plenty of clear spells inland,’ the Met said of tonight. ‘This will make for a chilly night with patchy fog and frost developing.’

Residents in London, Dover and Manchester could see temps of around 6C this evening, with Edinburgh likely to be as cold as 4C. 

Tomorrow will bring another cold and frosty start for many, but the meteorologists say the morning sun will burn away any mist or fog early on, leaving plenty of sunshine. 

It will turn cloudy from the southwest later in the afternoon, with some patchy rain possible for the far south and west through the evening. The Met says there will be light winds for all.

Sunday will also bring a frosty start with some mist or fog patches too. The mercury is predicted to fall to -1C in Edinburgh and remain at a chilly 1C in Birmingham and Glasgow.

It will turn cloudier through the day as a southeasterly wind strengthens. By the afternoon many western areas will turn wet. 

It will be a unsettled start to the work week, with many likely to face heavy rain and strong winds during the Monday morning commute. It will continue to turn more showery throughout the day and remain unsettled through Tuesday.

Much of the UK woke up to single-digit temperatures this morning, with some residents in Scotland battling frost. This morning the mercury fell to -6.3 in Altnaharra, a small hamlet in the Highlands, marking the coldest temperature of autumn

After a chilly start, forecasters say that today will be mainly dry and bright with lots of sunshine. However, there will be showers and spells of rain across southern England and the far north and east of Scotland

 It is likely that light showers will develop across coastal areas today and it will be quite breezy in the south

The UK’s big chill comes as much of the south is still storm chaos with flooding and power outages.

As winds gathered strength overnight, there was a growing crop of power blackouts including 325 homes without electricity near Hereford and another 250 in the Exeter and Plymouth areas of Devon.

The A370 Farleigh Road near Bristol was impassable due to flooding near Backwell Leisure Centre, causing rush hour congestion.

Traffic this morning was slow and heavier than normal on the M5 southbound carriageway after Junction 9 for the A46 and Tewkesbury.

Avon Fire and Rescue Service warned drivers not to enter deep water in their vehicles.

In a post on social media, they wrote ‘We’ve already been called out twice this morning to cars in floodwater.

‘Our advice for floodwater on the road: if you see a flooded road ahead, turn around and find an alternative route.’

People near Curry Moor and Hay Moor in Taunton and the South Winterbourne Valley in Dorchester have been urged to ‘act now’ as flood warnings and alerts remain in effect for numerous regions across the UK.

The Environment Agency said: ‘A flood warning means you need to act: flooding is expected. You should do all the actions for a flood alert.’

The agency also advised that those included in areas covered by the warning should: 

• Move vehicles to higher ground if it’s safe to do so
• Move family and pets to safety
• Move important items upstairs or to a safe place in your property, starting with cherished items and valuables, then furniture and furnishings
• Turn off gas, electricity and water supplies if it’s safe to do so; never touch an electrical switch if you’re standing in water 
• If you have property protection products such as flood barriers, or air brick covers, use them now
• Keep track of the latest flood risk situation 

Today’s flood alerts include the River Churn and its tributaries, River Thames at Calcutt and Lechlade, the upper Bristol Avon, the mid-Bristol Avon, West Somerset Streams, Lower Tone and Parett Moors, Rivers Yeo and Parett, River Yeo and Parett Moors at Mulcheney and Thorney, South East Somerset rivers.

Wet driving conditions for drivers on the M25 near Swanley in Kent on Wednesday

Pedestrians on Westminster Bridge are caught in heavy rain showers on Wednesday

Meanwhile, as the UK battles freezing temperatures and icy conditions this weekend, Exacta Weather meteorologist James Madden has warned that a band of low pressure could bring ‘snow within days’.

He said it is ‘likely’ that snow could fall in Scotland, predicting ‘even greater and more significant dumps of snow across higher ground in the north’.

The forecaster also claimed it is ‘increasingly likely’ that some regions will have a white Christmas this year.

‘It is now increasingly likely that we will see at least 1-2 notable wintry blasts from late November and into the first half of December, but it may turn milder or much milder later,’ Mr Madden said. 

However, he noted that long range forecasts can ‘drastically change’.

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