Hurricane Ernesto is set to disrupt the British summer as the remnants of the storm are expected to usher in wet weather across the country.
However, Londoners will be able to enjoy a few days of warm weather with sunny spells before the unsettled conditions arrive.
Ernesto ripped through the North Atlantic this week, with maximum winds of 85mph leaving hundreds of thousands of people in Puerto Rico and Bermuda without power.The Met Office has warned heavy rain and wind gusts of up to 60mph could batter parts of the UK as the storm dies out.The forecaster has predicted a dry start to the week in London with sunny intervals expected.
Temperatures in the capital will reach 23C on Tuesday and warm conditions are expected for the rest of the week.
But stormy conditions could be felt elsewhere and warnings cover south-west Scotland and the Lothian borders region on Monday afternoon and evening, and north-east Scotland – including the Highlands, Strathclyde and Central, Tayside and Fife – for most of Wednesday and Thursday.
Met Office forecaster Craig Snell said: “Ernesto, at the moment, is still out on the other side of the Atlantic as a tropical storm.
“As we go through the next couple of days, it kind of weakens as it moves into cooler waters and gets absorbed into a more typical area of low pressure, which we kind of get quite often.”
He continued: “Because the tropical systems just have so much warmth and a lot of moisture in them, remnants of the warmth and remnants of the moisture will be still there in that weather system on Wednesday and Thursday, so it will enhance the rainfall. “
The Met Office predicts conditions will become more settled towards the end of the month again, with any wetter weather confined to northern and western areas. Temperatures are expected to be close to average for this time of year.
Britain faces the worst August Bank Holiday travel meltdown for years next weekend, with more than 15 million cars clogging roads and a shutdown of major rail lines.
More than 3,000 roadworks, mainly by councils and utility firms, will frustrate drivers, RAC data showed.
RAC spokesman Simon Williams said: "It's the last chance for people to enjoy a long weekend this summer, so congestion will increase from Friday on trunk routes and near coasts.
"The extra day off will encourage many more people to travel over next weekend.
"Motorists should allow extra time for journeys," he warned.
On the trains, passengers face big delays with 440 engineering projects costing £84million closing some lines.
Revellers heading to the Notting Hill Carnival and music festivals will be hit.
