UK weather warning: ‘Torrential’ thunderstorms to shatter London heatwave
Londoners could be in for a shock after the scorching bank holiday heatwave, with the Met Office warning thunderstorms will hit the capital this afternoon.
Forecasters have issued a yellow weather warning amid predictions of heavy showers and thunderstorms for the capital and further afield.
Read more: What to do about staff skipping work for the beach
The thunderstorms “may cause some flooding and disruption to travel” in London and the south west of England.
“Although some places will miss them, heavy showers and thunderstorms will break out in some areas this afternoon,” the Met Office said.
“Where thunderstorms do occur, torrential rain and frequent lightning is expected as well as a chance of gusty winds and hail here and there. A few spots could see as much as 30 mm rain in an hour and 40 to 60 mm rain in two or three hours.
“There is a small chance that homes and businesses could be flooded quickly, with damage to some buildings from floodwater, lightning strikes, hail or strong winds.”
Breaking the heatwave
After temperatures soared in London over the weekend, they are set to hit 30 degrees Celsius again today, before storms break the cycle of hot weather.
A high of 33.2 degrees Celsius recorded at Heathrow made the weekend the hottest August bank holiday Monday on record.
Read more: Three ways to survive the summer heatwave in the workplace
The Met Office forecast currently shows temperatures rising as high as 31 degrees Celsius by 4pm today, before showers hit by about 6pm.
The showers are set to break the period of prolonged hot weather that left Londoners sweating over the bank holiday, with Wednesday temperatures peaking at 21 degrees Celsius.
Main image: Getty