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Glastonbury weather 2014: Rain begins as festival-goers hope to avoid mud

Music fans were warned that this summer's event could be a mudbath

Jamie Merrill
Friday 27 June 2014 03:58 EDT
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Festival goers walk in the rain at Glastonbury Festival last year with similar scenes expected this weekend
Festival goers walk in the rain at Glastonbury Festival last year with similar scenes expected this weekend (Getty Images)

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Two days of glorious Glastonbury sunshine came to an abrupt end this afternoon, with heavy rain showers breaking over Worthy Farm in Somerset.

The first major acts at the annual music festival do not start playing until tomorrow but the 1,200 acre site has been busy since Wednesday with revellers taking advantage of the early good weather.

A return to the famous mud bath of 1997 seems unlikely but rain today comes after the wettest winter on record, with Somerset bearing the brunt of the flooding.

The area's soil moisture deficit is still "abnormally low" according to Channel 4 News weather forecaster Liam Dutton.

Soil moisture level measures the amount of moisture in the soil: the lower the deficit, the more water present.

The moisture level for Devon and Cornwall at the end of May was just 6mm, compared to a yearly average of around 30mm, according to the Environment Agency's monthly report for the south west.

Glastonbury-goers were warned to expect a predictably British affair in the weather stakes but have at least been able to pitch their tents on dry ground. Here's hoping they stay in tact once the mud strikes.

The rain is set to worsen tomorrow and continue into Saturday with sunnier spells expect for the closing day of the festival on Sunday.

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