People are being urged to take care when out and about on Wednesday as a 'danger to life' weather warning has been issued across East Lancashire.

The yellow warning for rain has been issued by the Met Office, and will be in place from 12.15am on Wednesday, May 22, until 6am on Thursday 23, and covers the whole of Lancashire.

In the warning, the Met Office says heavy rain may cause flooding and disruption to travel.

It said some communities may be cut off by flooded roads, while spray and flooding could lead to difficult driving conditions and some road closures.

Homes and businesses could be flooded, causing damage to some buildings, the forecaster warned, while fast-flowing or deep floodwater is possible, causing a "danger to life".

It also said delays or cancellations to train and bus services are possible due the severity of the expected rainfall.

The chief forecaster said: "An area of rain is expected to develop across eastern and central England and then move north-westwards to affect northern England and north Wales during Wednesday afternoon.

"The area of rain could then become slow-moving, heavy and persistent, especially over north-facing hills, before clearing during Thursday morning.

"There is a lot of uncertainty over exactly where the heaviest rain will occur and this warning is likely to be updated.

"Many places will see 30 to 40mm of rain, while a few areas may receive 60 to 80mm. There is also a small chance that a few upland areas could see much higher totals, in the order of 100 to 150mm."

The current forecast shows an 80 per cent chance of rain from midnight on Wednesday in Blackburn, stopping briefly from 3am to 5am, before an 80 to 90 per cent chance of heavy rain all day and until around 10am on Thursday.

Be prepared for rain weather warning and floods

The Met Office has urged people to check if their property could be at risk of flooding, and if it is then a flood plan and emergency flood kit should be prepared, including moving electrical items and other important items upstairs to minimise damage if the house does flood, and also stockpiling sandbags to barricade doors and windows.

Those who need to travel on Wednesday are urged to check road conditions before travelling to avoid delays, and also bus or train timetables.

Households should also ensure they have torches and batteries to hand in case of power cuts, plus charging packs and other essential items.