A new yellow weather warning has been issued for a large part of England and Wales as thunderstorms, torrential downpours, hail and lightning are forecast during the Bank Holiday weekend.
The Met Office issued the warning at 9.58am on Saturday, 29 August.
It comes into force at midday today and remains active until 9pm on Saturday evening.
The warning stretches across a broad area from south-west England and parts of Wales through the Midlands and into eastern England.
Areas covered include parts of Somerset, Bristol, Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, South Gloucestershire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, Worcestershire, the West Midlands, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire, Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire.
Parts of Wales are also included, covering areas including Cardiff, Swansea, Newport, Powys, Carmarthenshire and the Vale of Glamorgan.
Buckinghamshire, Milton Keynes and Oxfordshire are among the areas covered in the South East.
The Met Office says an area of heavy showers and thunderstorms will move across the warning area during Saturday afternoon and early evening.
The weather is expected to affect western areas first before progressing eastwards, with drier conditions following later.
Some locations could receive between 15mm and 25mm of rain within just one hour.
Totals of around 30mm are possible over a period of two to three hours, with hail and lightning creating additional hazards.
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The warning means there is a possibility that a small number of homes and businesses could experience flooding.
People travelling by road are also being warned that spray and sudden flooding could create difficult driving conditions and potentially lead to road closures.
Where thunderstorms develop, lightning strikes and hail could create further disruption.
Public transport may also be affected, with the Met Office warning that train services could experience delays.
The timing is particularly significant because millions of people are travelling or attending outdoor events over the August Bank Holiday weekend.
Festivalgoers at events including Reading and Leeds are among those facing unsettled conditions this weekend, although the precise location of individual thunderstorms remains difficult to predict.
A yellow warning does not mean that every location within the highlighted area will experience a thunderstorm.
Thunderstorms can be highly localised, meaning one area may experience intense rainfall and lightning while locations only a short distance away remain comparatively dry.
The latest warning follows an unusually hot and dry summer across much of the country.
Sudden heavy rainfall falling onto very dry or hard ground can increase the risk of rapid surface-water run-off because the ground may initially struggle to absorb large amounts of water.
Drivers travelling through affected areas should be prepared for rapidly changing conditions, particularly where intense showers reduce visibility or create standing water on roads.
People attending outdoor events are also being advised to keep up to date with the latest forecast and any instructions issued by event organisers.
The Met Office may update the warning during Saturday as forecasters gain a clearer picture of where the most intense thunderstorms are developing.
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Sources
Met Office – UK Weather Warnings
ITV News – Yellow Thunderstorm Warning Issued as Festivalgoers Face More Wet Weather
