The Met Office has updated a weather warning affecting Greater Manchester.
The yellow warning of rain has been in place since 6am this morning (January 5) but it has now been expanded with the end time pushed back. The alert is now in place until 6am on Monday morning (January 6) with warnings of flooding and travel disruption.
The area affected by the warning has also been expanded over the North West of England and also towards parts of Yorkshire and the East Midlands. According to the Met Office, that the ‘heavy rain and thawing snow’ could lead to flooding in some of these places.
However, the risk of flooding across the regions affected over the coming days remains ‘low’ or ‘very low’. Spray and flooding and roads will ‘probably’ make journey times longer, the Met Office says, while bus and trains services are also like to be affected by rain.
The areas covered by the warning include Greater Manchester, Cheshire and Merseyside as well as parts of Wales and the Midlands. It comes after the Met Office issued three weather warnings covering Greater Manchester including an amber alert for snow and ice.
The Met Office issued an update to the yellow warning for rain at 11.19am. It said: “Outbreaks of rain, heavy at times, are likely on Sunday. 15 to 25 mm rainfall, combined with some thaw of lying snow, may lead to some flooding and travel disruption in places.
“Give yourself the best chance of avoiding delays by checking road conditions if driving, or bus and train timetables, amending your travel plans if necessary. Give yourself the best chance of avoiding delays by checking road conditions if driving, or bus and train timetables, amending your travel plans if necessary.
“People cope better with power cuts when they have prepared for them in advance. It’s easy to do; consider gathering torches and batteries, a mobile phone power pack and other essential items.
“Be prepared for weather warnings to change quickly: when a weather warning is issued, the Met Office recommends staying up to date with the weather forecast in your area.
“Check if your property could be at risk of flooding. If so, consider preparing a flood plan and an emergency flood kit.”