Submitted by Steve Turner on
February was a month of contrasting conditions, beginning wet and mild and ending cold and dry. The UK registered notably above average rainfall and most regions were wetter than average, some substantially so. The unsettled conditions early in the month (including the named storms ‘Henry’ and ‘Imogen’) contributed to the second wettest winter for the UK (in a series from 1910) and the second warmest winter in the Central England Temperature series (from 1659). Soils remained saturated, and average river flows were above normal in most of northern and western Britain and in the normal range elsewhere. Average river flows for the winter were the highest on record for a large number of northern and western catchments, as were the outflows from Great Britain (in a series from 1961). Groundwater levels generally remained in the normal range or above, notably so in parts of northern England and along the south coast. The majority of reservoirs remained close to capacity and overall stocks for England & Wales were above average. The dry weather over the latter part of the month has moderated the risk of surface water and groundwater flooding, although with soils saturated and river flows and groundwater levels generally in the normal range or above, many regions of the UK remain sensitive to additional rainfall.
The full Hydrological Summary can be found here.
