The Met Office has issued a 13-hour yellow thunderstorm warning for millions of Brits as the nation’s heatwave misery looks set to end in horror weather conditions this weekend.
Scattered storms will hit the North of England and Wales from 3pm tomorrow until 4am on Sunday, with residents warned of a higher risk of flooding and power cuts.
In England, the yellow warning is in place for the East Midlands, the North East, North West, the West Midlands, Yorkshire and Humber, and parts of Wales are also impacted.
The storms will help break a heatwave that has seen the UK post the hottest day of the year so far this week – a record expected to be broken today.
Temperatures reached as high as 32.2C in Kew, west London, on Thursday, amid an amber heat-health alert for all regions in England.
The alert, issued by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) for the first time since September 2023, is in force until 9am on Monday.
It warns “significant impacts are likely” across health and social care services because of high temperatures, including a rise in deaths, particularly among those aged 65 and over or people with health conditions.
Meanwhile, temperatures are forecast to reach the low 30s and could potentially hit 33C on Friday, the Met Office said.
And by Friday afternoon a number of areas are expected to have passed the heatwave criteria, Met Office weather forecaster Dan Stroud said.
An official heatwave is recorded when areas reach a certain temperature for three consecutive days, with thresholds varying from 25C to 28C in different parts of the UK.
This is a breaking news story and is being constantly updated.
