SUFFOLK was today staying relatively dry as parts of Britain are overwhelmed by flooding.The dramatic weather that has left hundreds of people stranded in their homes and hundreds of others prevented from returning to them in parts of central England has avoided Suffolk so far.

SUFFOLK was today staying relatively dry as parts of Britain are overwhelmed by flooding.

The dramatic weather that has left hundreds of people stranded in their homes and hundreds of others prevented from returning to them in parts of central England has avoided Suffolk so far.

On Friday, when many areas experienced torrential downpours of up to five inches, Suffolk had rain of less than a quarter of an inch.

As parts of the country are submerged by flood waters farmers in our area have been forced to continue with their water spraying to keep their crops on track.

The Evening Star's weather guru, Ken Blowers, said today: “We have been extremely lucky.

“There have been areas of rain to the west of us and areas to the east of us, in the North Sea, but we have remained largely untouched.

“We are going to get more rain from now but it won't be as bad as it has been for other parts of the country.”

Mr Blowers said the reason of the dramatic weather was the change in position of a jet stream, a river of wind which determines the type of depressions coming in from the west, with the depressions bringing cold and rain.

He added that the jet stream is usually between Scotland and Iceland but recently it had been over Britain instead, bringing the miserable weather with it.

Mr Blowers added: “It has been good news for people who make umbrellas but not many other people.

“Thankfully we've been very lucky here.

“So far this month we've had two inches of rain and the average for the whole month is 2.25 inches.”

The level of rain in July so far makes it one of the driest periods in recent months. In June there were 3.52 inches of rain and in May, 4.92 inches.

Mr Blowers added: “Another factor is that we have had very unsettled weather. For ten weeks together we have had changeable weather with occasional rain showers which is very unusual.”

Do you feel lucky to have avoided the rain? Would you like to see more rain? Have you been affected by the floods? Write to Your Letters, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich IP4 1AN or e-mail eveningstarletters@eveningstar.co.uk.