Environment Agency Wales is advising people to be alert for disruption from possible flooding in Wales as heavy, persistent rain is forecast from early Friday.
While North East Wales is likely to take the brunt of the heavy rain, the Met Office has issued a yellow “be aware” warning for most of Wales, including Caerphilly County Borough, from early Friday and overnight into Saturday.
The Environment Agency has said that recent heavy rain means the ground in many parts of Wales remains saturated which increases the risk of flooding.
Heavy rainfall could also cause rivers to respond and rise quickly and also lead to surface water flooding from drains and small streams.
The Agency strongly advises people not to walk or drive through any flooding and to steer clear of fast flowing water as it can be particularly hazardous.
Officers are to be deployed today (Thursday) ahead of the forecast rain to check debris screens and remove blockages to allow water to flow away more quickly and to make sure that flood defences are operating effectively.
Tony Waters, Deputy Chief Forecaster at the Met Office, said: “We are expecting spells of very heavy and thundery rain across a wide area of the UK in the next few days, with worst affected spots likely to be in central and northern parts of the country.
“Rainfall totals could be 20-40 mm widely across warning areas, but some places could see around 100 mm of rain through Friday and into Saturday. Given the saturated ground from the record rainfall in June, this could cause significant disruption – including difficult driving conditions and flooding in some areas.”
For the latest on flood alerts and warnings go to www.environment-agency.gov.uk/flood or call Floodline on 0845 988 1188.