Met Office says it is 'committed to learning the lessons' of Storm Bert after criticism but defends forecasts

The Met Office has said it is "committed to learning the lessons from Storm Bert" after criticism of its weather forecasts.

The weather service also defended itself, pointing out that "observed rainfall totals were broadly in line with the forecast and the severe weather warnings issued in advance".

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Through the end of last week and into the weekend, the storm brought torrential rain and winds over 80mph to parts of the UK.

At least four people have died since Storm Bert began, leaving communities badly flooded and turning roads into rivers.

It brought a month's worth of rain in one weekend to parts of the UK, with the hills of South Wales the worst hit.

'Incompetence'

In the House of Commons, on Monday, ministers were told that "incompetence" at the Met Office led to an underestimation of the storm.

Labour MP for Cardiff West Alex Barros-Curtis claimed warnings should have been "amber or red".

He said: "Can I ask that the secretary of state [Environment Secretary Steve Reed] speak to his Department for Science, Innovation and Technology colleagues to carefully look into the role of the Met Office here?

"It is clear that their response was slow and that there was a clear underestimation of the impact of Storm Bert.

"They put it yellow rather than amber or red. Our constituents have been let down by this incompetence before, and it cannot keep happening."

However, in response to this and other criticism, Met Office services director Simon Brown said that rainfall levels were "within the expected range of that forecast".

He added that the warnings in place also highlighted the danger from the floods and outlined how "many factors" play a role in their warning strategy.

Mr Brown continued: "I'm committed to learning the lessons from Storm Bert to support even greater preparedness and we will be reviewing our warning strategy and how this linked to flood models in the coming weeks and days.

"Today my team and I have been working with stakeholder, partners and customers to start to review Storm Bert."

Weather forecast

Extreme weather events like Storm Bert are becoming more common with human-induced climate change, studies show.

Provisional statistics show that White Barrow, in Devon, experienced the most rainfall during Storm Bert with 175.7mm (6.91") between 23 November and midnight 25 November.

Treherbert, Tyn-Y-Waun in South Wales recorded 171.6mm (6.76") at a Natural Resources Wales rain gauge over the same period and winds of 82mph were recorded in Capel Curig, Gwynedd.

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Storm Bert will slowly "pull away" from the UK on Tuesday, the Met Office said, but the risk of flooding may remain.

It is expected to be largely drier and sunnier - with some showers in Northern Ireland, northern England and on western coasts.

However, on Wednesday, an area of low pressure is set to move into southern parts of the UK bringing back more heavy rain.

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