The July 2007 floods in England and Wales - a preliminary appraisal issued by the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology

The weather conditions experienced across much of the UK throughout the summer of 2007 have been truly exceptional. The jet stream (which influences the paths taken by weather systems in the North Atlantic) has followed an abnormally southerly track and the extension of the Azores high pressure cell across the UK – which brings settled weather conditions in most summers – has failed to become established. Correspondingly, a sustained sequence of rain-bearing low pressure systems has produced outstanding 12-week rainfall totals, and a series of flood events culminating in widespread severe flooding in late July.