Met Office south west 47-hour weather warning over severe thunderstorms and lightning
A severe weather warning for thunderstorms and heavy showers is currently in place across much of southern England and Wales, with the Met Office cautioning that damage to buildings from lightning strikes, disruption to public transport, and flooding are likely within the affected regions.
The Met Office has issued a stark warning for the southwest of England in particular: "Spray and sudden flooding could lead to difficult driving conditions and some road closures. Where flooding or lightning strikes occur, there is a chance of delays and some cancellations to train and bus services."
"Power cuts might occur and other services to some homes and businesses could be lost. Flooding of homes and businesses could happen quickly, with damage to some buildings from floodwater, lightning strikes, hail or strong winds. Fast flowing or deep floodwater is possible, causing a danger to life. Some communities might become cut off if roads flood."
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Spanning southwest England, as well as the Midlands and parts of southeast and northern England, the yellow warning took effect at 1am and is set to last until midnight on Sunday.
On top of this, another weather warning for rain will be activated on Sunday for Wales and central south-west England.
Regions in the warning zone may experience between 50mm and 70mm of rainfall in just a few hours, potentially accompanied by hail and frequent lightning.
This bout of stormy weather breaks the spell of warm, dry conditions, which saw temperatures soar to 25C in Inverness on Wednesday and matched in southeast England on Thursday, as reported by the forecaster.
In an update on the unpredictable British weather, Met Office Chief Meteorologist Jason Kelly explained: "The warnings cover the areas of the country most at risk of seeing thunderstorms but not everyone within a warning area will experience a thunderstorm. For many much of the time it will remain dry."
Meanwhile, Met Office Deputy Chief Meteorologist Dan Harris has warned of persistent wet conditions, considering extended warnings into next week: "The area of persistent and at times heavy rain that we are expecting to have developed by the end of Sunday will most likely continue for some parts of southern UK through at least the first part of Monday, before starting to clear eastwards," he disclosed.
He further added the caveat concerning the forecast's precision: "By this time, however, confidence falls sharply in terms of both its exact location and rainfall amounts."