EXTREME weather conditions like those seen at the weekend could become more frequent, experts have warned.

And, they say, climate change could mean even more violent weather changes take place in the future.

Recent flash floods in Boscastle, in Cornwall, and Carlisle, in Cumbria, have heightened fears about the weather, and caused the issue of climate change to be cited as the reason for such storms.

Some residents in North Yorkshire who were hit by Sunday's flash floods likened the storms to "another Boscastle".

Climatologists have warned that flash floods can strike at any time, and can cause most damage when the torrential downpours hit low areas after a long or intense dry spell.

When the soil has been dried out by the sun in hot weather, it becomes more difficult for the water to filter down through the soil.

The weekend storms were linked to thunderclouds that gathered due to the high temperatures, but Elliot Morley, minister for flood defence, warned that climate change could mean that freak weather is likely to become more common.

He said: "This was an extreme event, it is a reminder that flooding can happen at any time and in unexpected places.

"These extreme events are likely to become more common as a result of climate change, and people have to think more about what they can do to adapt their homes to mitigate the impacts."

A spokesman for the Environment Agency said: "More of these sorts of things are going to happen in the future. We will see more extreme weather events.

"Over the past few years, there has been a lot of intense rainfall and localised flooding similar to this linked to climate change."