Bertha's last blast: Remnants of hurricane that tore through Caribbean brings torrential rain and gales to Britain

• South-west battered by high winds and heavy rain as dying embers of storm make landfall
• Hurricane Bertha ripped through Caribbean, with 90mph winds causing chaos and power outages
• Foul weather is sweeping up through the rest of UK throughout today, causing floods and travel chaos

By Sam Webb

Lashing rain and fierce winds have battered parts of Britain as the remnants of Hurricane Bertha sweep across the country.

Winds gusting at almost 50mph struck Cornwall this morning, while nearly a month's rainfall was dumped over parts of Wales in just one night. The former hurricane tore through the Caribbean early last week and has travelled over the Atlantic to the UK, bringing the threat of floods in its wake.

Torrential downpours broke out over Wales, where 31mm of rain fell on the port of Milford Haven in the 12 hours until 7am - the average rainfall for the whole of August is 40mm.

The Met Office has increased the number of flood alerts to 34, spanning all of Britain apart from the north west.

Looming: Hurricane Bertha brings heavy wind and rain storms over London. Heavy rain and winds will sweep through the UK as a consequence of the dying moments of the storm, which brought chaos to the Caribbean

Neptune's fury: Giant waves batter Southsea seafront in Hampshire today. Heavy rains have hit much of the UK, bringing travel chaos

Thrillseeker: A man endures the fury of the sea as large waves crash into the seafront at Southsea in Hampshire

Today high spring tides and strong winds combined to raise the risk of large waves and possible flooding to the south-west coast of England

The Met Office has issued weather warnings about heavy rain across the UK today. Pictured right, the fishing fleet at Lyme Regis takes refuge in the harbour

Met Office yellow weather warnings telling people to 'be aware' of rainfall for England, Wales and Scotland have now also been extended to Northern Ireland.

Rachael Vince, a forecaster with MeteoGroup, said: 'It is more of an autumnal storm. The rainfall is fairly persistent over the Midlands, north east and north west of England. While there is more showery rain in the south and west of England and Wales.'

She said most of Britain could be hit by 25mm of rain over the day, while the mountainous beauty spot of Snowdonia in Wales could be deluged by 50mm of water.

Firefighters in mid and west Wales have been called to three flooding incidents in St Davids, Pembrokeshire.

More...

• Bike race route cut amid rain fears
• Where did the summer go? Torrential rain and gale force winds cause flash flooding and power cuts.... and the worst is still to come with Hurricane Bertha to hit tomorrow morning
• Attack of the sea monsters: With beaches swimming in perils from urchins to jellyfish, we tell you how to survive bumping into one

The Red Cross has mobilised hundreds of volunteers who are on standby to help anyone affected by the storm.

The conditions have forced the cancellation or led to disruption for a string of festivals and sporting events.

Organisers had to postpone the prestigious Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race, which was due to kick off in Cowes on the Isle of Wight today. It will set sail at 9am tomorrow instead, to allow the stormy weather to subside.

Grimacing: Pedestrians dash through torrential rain along the Millennium Bridge in Southwark, London

These walkers found their umbrellas of very little used as they struggled against torrential rain in central London today

Crest: Water sprays as a car passes through a flooded road in Chilwell, Nottingham

Dramatic: These pictures show the moment Hurricane Bertha hit the East of England this afternoon. Large black storm clouds loomed in the skies above this field

The Met Office has increased the number of flood alerts to 34, spanning all of Britain apart from the north west

Plume: Waves crash against the lighthouse and sea wall during high winds and storms at Newhaven in East Sussex

Soaked: A car is covered in spray as waves crash on the quay at Newhaven. Met Office yellow weather warnings telling people to 'be aware' of rainfall for England, Wales and Scotland have now also been extended to Northern Ireland

Ghostly: A ship is outlined in mist as the remnants of Hurricane Bertha hits the Port of Dover in Kent

Splashdown: A woman walking her dog in Dover is hit by spray as the sea churns and roils beneath her

The RideLondon Surrey Classic, which sees more than 20,000 cyclists pedal through rural Surrey before ending on the Mall, has been shortened from 100 miles to 86 - missing out the Box Hill climb over fears of heavy rain.

The last day of the Boardmasters music and surfing festival in Cornwall has been axed 'in light of the extreme weather conditions caused by hurricane Bertha', organisers said.

Brittany Ferries said it had cancelled its four fast-craft catamaran services between Portsmouth and Le Havre and Cherbourg in France today.

There are fears strong winds could conjure up massive waves and breach sea defences in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, Harbour Road in Bridlington and parts of the North Bank of the Humber Estuary. The risk is expected to be at its peak at around teatime.

Turbulent weather already wreaked havoc across the east coast of Britain on Friday night, leaving many homes flooded and causing power cuts in 1,400 properties.

Not exactly the weather for it: An empty Nottingham Riviera beach outside the city hall as the remnants of Hurricane Bertha passes through the East Midlands

Harnessed: Kitesurfers on the Suusex coast take advantage of the high winds resulting from the tail end of Hurricane Bertha

Soaring: A kitesurfer takes to the air is rough seas today. Temperatures will hit highs of 23C in the south east today, and hover in the mid-teens in the north of England and Scotland.But the wind and rain will make most of the country feel far cooler

Torrent: Pictured, large waves over the famous Cobb at Lyme Regis in Dorset this morning

Pouring: Rain falls on a Western Front Association charity commemoration, as eighty-five poppy wreaths, representing the eighty-five units the British Expeditionary Force took at the outset of the First World War, are brought past Buckingham Palace in London, on the back of a horse-drawn wagon

Commemoration: The 85 wreaths are passing through London en-route to their eventual destination in France

Soaked cyclists: Riders in the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100 are drenched in heavy rain as they reach Box Hill in Surrey

The cyclists began to leave Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park at 6am and rode through the capital out into the Surrey before returning to finish on The Mall in London

Beachgoers, undeterred by the weather, enjoy a windy day in Newquay. The final day of the Boardmasters Surf and Music Festival was cancelled

Despite gusty conditions and high waves, people still flocked to the beach - although wrapped up warmer than they did earlier in the week

Fire crews in Norfolk, Cambridgeshire and Lincolnshire battled to pump gallons of water out of swamped properties, while marooned drivers had to abandon their cars as they became stuck in flooded roads.

Ms Vince said that after basking in a glorious heatwave for much of July, the curse of the typical British summer had struck again.

She said: 'We did have that heatwave in July, so it is feeling distinctly more autumnal this week as a whole.

'But it is a typical British summer - really a bit of rain in August is nothing unusual.

'The centre of the storm will have passed over the coast of Britain by 5pm or 6pm. But we are in an unsettled spell of weather for this week with showers and perhaps some thunderstorms through the rest of the week.'

Damage: High winds felled a tree in Worthing, West Sussex, smashing the the back window of this car

Caution; The Environment Agency warned motorists to take care due to high winds and heavy rainfall

Undeterred: A surfer takes to the sea in Brighton to make the most of the high waves. Heavy rain and high winds are hitting Brighton as what remains of Hurricane Bertha has reached the South Coast

Head down and get on with it: A man gets soaked this morning whilst crossing a road on the Southsea seafront in Portsmouth today

Grim: A woman shelters under her coat from the driving rain and howling wind by Brighton Pier

The Red Cross has mobilised hundreds of volunteers who are on standby amid fears people will need to be evacuated from their homes. Pictured, visitors to Portsmouth struggle against the wind and rain storm

Temperatures will hit highs of 23C in the south east today, and hover in the mid-teens in the north of England and Scotland.

But the wind and rain will make most of the country feel far cooler.

A mass ascent of hot air balloons in Bristol was called off earlier because of poor weather conditions.

The ascent was due to start the final day of the Bristol International Balloon Fiesta which has been attended by hundreds of thousands of people since Thursday.

Vintage air displays were also cancelled but the Ashton Court estate event remains fully open to the public.

Saturday evening's mass launch also had to be cancelled due to bad weather.

The fiesta, now in its 36th year, attracts pilots and visitors from all over the world.

Ominous: Storm clouds gather around Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales on Sat night

Hurricane Bertha ripped through the Caribbean and swept across the Atlantic towards the UK

Aftermath: Hector Ruiz Torres helps clean the access to his home in after heavy rain, resulting from Tropical Storm Bertha passing through southern Puerto Rico