Overview
- Met Office guidance says an unsettled spell is likely between Wednesday and Friday, with the heaviest rain focused on 26–28 August and maps showing rain reaching Greater Manchester by Thursday afternoon then again Friday morning.
- The rain band is driven by a low‑pressure system tracking north‑east from the north‑east Atlantic near Portugal, a pattern forecasters say will lift warm, humid air into the UK before cooler conditions return.
- Forecasters warn intense downpours and thunderstorms could produce flash‑flooding and localised flooding because parched ground from the long summer drought absorbs water poorly.
- United Utilities has urged customers to keep using water wisely but says it has no immediate plans to reintroduce formal restrictions for Greater Manchester and the north west.
- Long‑range Met Office outlooks show conditions are likely to remain changeable with above‑average rainfall and possible strong winds into early September, and the US National Hurricane Center is monitoring the Atlantic low for a low chance of subtropical development.