Summer gales expected across Britain

London: Gales were expected to sweep across parts of Britain on Sunday, with heavy rain and unusually strong summer winds powerful enough to bring down trees and blow over caravans, forecasters said.

The Met Office said winds will gust at between 80 and 97km/h across southern Scotland, northern England, Wales and the midlands.

There is a chance of a isolated gusts reaching 113km/h.

"It's fairly unusual to get winds of this strength at this time of year," Met Office duty forecaster Dave Elliott said. "Because it's the middle of summer, all the trees are in full leaf and they act as big sails. Branches and even whole trees could come down."

The bad weather, which swept in off the Atlantic in a deep area of low pressure, was due to bring showers during the afternoon.

The gales are expected to ease during the evening as the low pressure system moves towards Scandinavia.