Storm Dave: As the Met Office names its fourth storm of the year, when will UK weather turn warmer?

In case you were hoping for your first barbecue of the year this Bank Holiday weekend, think again. The Met Office has named Storm Dave as its fourth storm of the year and it is set to bring very strong winds in the north of the UK on Saturday evening into Easter Sunday.

Deputy Chief Forecaster, Tom Crabtree, said: “Storm Dave will form and rapidly deepen on Saturday as it approaches the UK from the west. By Saturday afternoon winds will strengthen significantly, with gusts of 60-70mph expected at times across parts of Scotland with the potential for gusts of 80-90mph in exposed coastal locations in Scotland. Gusts of 50-60mph are likely more widely in northern Britain.

“As well as strong winds, Storm Dave will also bring heavy snowfall over the hills in northern Scotland where up to 10-20cm of snow could accumulate. Along with the strong winds this will lead to blizzard conditions. Elsewhere there will be heavy spells of rain as the system moves through eastwards across the UK. With Storm Dave a few days away, people should prepare their property for the strong winds and keep updated with the latest weather forecast as the weather warnings are likely to be updated.”

The Met Office has also said: “A number of Yellow severe weather warnings for wind have been issued covering the whole of Scotland, Northern Ireland north Wales and parts of northern England. The medium impact Yellow warnings are likely to be updated as confidence in the detail of the severe weather increases. Across all warning areas gusts of 50-60mph are expected widely, with 60-70mph gusts possible in exposed locations. The strongest gusts will be in Scotland, where there is a small chance of gusts up to 80-90mph for a short time in exposed locations.”

“The wind speeds will peak at different times as the deep area of low pressure moves across the north of the UK, with peak gusts in Northern Ireland expected earlier on Saturday afternoon before spreading more widely across the north of the UK.

“As well as strong winds, heavy snow is likely to cause disruption, with accumulations of 5-10cm possible at location over 200m in elevation in northern Scotland. Some areas could see 10-20cm and with strong wind blizzards and drifting snow will be an additional hazard. A Yellow warning for snow has also been issued for 15:00 Saturday to 03:00 Sunday covering northwest Scotland.”

It is not expected to become warmer anytime soon in the UK. The Met Office has said: “The outlook for next week remains unsettled, with further bands of cloud and rain likely to move in from the west, maintaining a cloudy theme with some rain and temperatures around average.”