An expert has warned that people with allergies could suffer 'thunder fever' this week due to unusual weather conditions. There are fears for millions of people thanks to 'super pollen' combined with the tail end of a tropical storm.
Experts say pollen counts will rise to 'very high' across the UK this week before the country is hit by thunderstorms from ex-Tropical Storm Alex. Airborne allergens expert Max Wiseberg told the Daily Star : “With this fine weather thunderstorms are also predicted, and they can bring problems for hay fever sufferers.
“Very high pollen counts are predicted across many parts of England from Thursday onwards causing havoc for the millions of hay-fever sufferers in the UK. Predicted thunderstorms won’t give respite, as instead they can cause a phenomenon known as ‘thunder fever’.”
High humidity will split grains into tiny, highly potent particles, while storms will wash them to nose-level.
Mr Wiseberg, creator of HayMax allergen barrier balm, said: “According to a report in The European Respiratory review, humidity breaks pollen grains into smaller allergenic particles. These new pollen grains turn into a kind of ‘super pollen’, and this appears to be more allergenic than normal pollen, causing more severe reactions in sufferers.
“Storms bring pollen grains down which might have otherwise risen above head height out of harm’s way and whipping up pollen grains and fungal spores near the ground.”
The UK will face “unseasonably” strong winds later this week, with forecasters warning of 45mph gusts as the remnants of a tropical storm lash the country. The Met Office said that Thursday will see ex-tropical storm Alex bringing high winds in areas of the UK.
Storm Alex caused disruption across Florida, producing heavy rainfall over the weekend in several regions, including Miami, which reportedly experienced 5.24in of rain. From Thursday, weaker rain will move from west to east, with ex-tropical storm Alex bringing low pressure.
On Friday, winds will begin to strengthen across the UK and some showers are to move into the western parts of the UK, particularly the north-west of the UK, which includes Northern Ireland, western Scotland and parts of northern England. Oli Claydon, a Met Office spokesperson, told the PA news agency: “The wind is the main part of the story – unseasonably strong winds for the time of year.
“We could see gusts of up to 45mph through Friday. Those sorts of wind speeds will be fairly confined to the far north-west of the UK, but as the low pressure goes over the north of the UK through Saturday, a wider area of the north of the UK could see those sorts of wind speeds. It will be windy everywhere across the UK, but the further south you go, the less influence the low pressure will have.”
Mr Claydon added that the ex-storm will largely lose its strength as it progresses into the weekend and that “it doesn’t have its regular tropical properties in terms of strength”.
On Tuesday, dry weather took centre stage, with highs of 22C predicted in London, England. Belfast in Northern Ireland experienced highs of 18C, Morvern on the west coast of Scotland reached 19C and Cardiff in Wales hit 20C, according to the Met Office.
On Tuesday evening, however, a band of rain is set to move in from the south-west of the UK, which will bring rain to most areas of the UK on Wednesday and then give way to winds when ex-tropical storm Alex takes over on Thursday.
