Map shows where lightning could strike as thunderstorm warning issued
Up to 75mm of rain could bucket it down in less than an hour this Sunday as massive thunderstorms are forecast for almost two-thirds of England.
The Met Office has issued a yellow thunderstorm warning which covers London, the South East, North East, North West, South West and the Midlands.
The yellow alert, active from 4am to 9pm tomorrow, also covers eastern Wales.
Forecasters say there is a ‘slight chance’ of flooding, lightning strikes and power outages.
The thunderstorms will start to rumble in the south first before ‘steadily’ moving northwards through the afternoon and evening, weather officials say.
‘The extent of these thunderstorms is very uncertain, and many places will miss them, but where they do occur, 30 to 40mm of rain may fall in less than an hour with perhaps over 75mm in one or two places, leading to a chance of flooding and disruption,’ the warning says.
‘Frequent lightning strikes and hail will be additional hazards, most likely across southern and central England.’
A yellow weather warning means disruption to daily life is ‘likely’.
What areas does the yellow warning cover?
Regions and local authorities affected:
East Midlands
- Derby
- Derbyshire
- Leicester
- Leicestershire
- Lincolnshire
- Northamptonshire
- Nottingham
- Nottinghamshire
- Rutland
East of England
- Bedford
- Cambridgeshire
- Central Bedfordshire
- Hertfordshire
- Luton
- Peterborough
London & South East England
- Bracknell Forest
- Buckinghamshire
- Greater London
- Hampshire
- Isle of Wight
- Milton Keynes
- Oxfordshire
- Portsmouth
- Reading
- Slough
- Southampton
- Surrey
- West Berkshire
- West Sussex
- Windsor and Maidenhead
- Wokingham
North East England
- Darlington
- Durham
- Gateshead
- Hartlepool
- Middlesbrough
- Newcastle upon Tyne
- North Tyneside
- Northumberland
- Redcar and Cleveland
- South Tyneside
- Stockton-on-Tees
- Sunderland
North West England
- Blackburn with Darwen
- Cheshire East
- Cheshire West and Chester
- Cumbria
- Greater Manchester
- Halton
- Lancashire
- Merseyside
- Warrington
South West England
- Bath and North East Somerset
- Bournemouth Christchurch and Poole
- Bristol
- Dorset
- Gloucestershire
- North Somerset
- Somerset
- South Gloucestershire
- Swindon
- Wiltshire
Wales
- Monmouthshire
- Newport
- Torfaen
- Wrexham
West Midlands
- Herefordshire
- Shropshire
- Staffordshire
- Stoke-on-Trent
- Telford and Wrekin
- Warwickshire
- West Midlands Conurbation
- Worcestershire
Yorkshire & Humber
- East Riding of Yorkshire
- Kingston upon Hull
- North East Lincolnshire
- North Lincolnshire
- North Yorkshire
- South Yorkshire
- West Yorkshire
- York
The yellow weather warning comes on top of another two issued by public health officials.
Yellow heat health alerts for the East and South East of England are in effect until 9am Monday as the UK sees temperatures nearly reach 30°C this weekend.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) says ‘minor impacts’ are probable across the health and social care sector, especially for more vulnerable people.
Both warnings say there may be an ‘increase in risk of mortality amongst vulnerable individuals and increased potential for indoor environments to become very wars’.
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