Kentish Express Ashford & District
Thunderstorm lights up summer skies
From searing sunshine to sparks of electricity, the recent hot spell was briefly replaced by downpours and thunder and lightning as storms hit the area in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
Unable to sleep because of the thunder, many grabbed cameras to take snaps of the storm.
The weather front caused disruption across Kent, leading to evacuated homes and commuter chaos on Tuesday morning.
Scores of readers contacted the paper with their images they had taken of the lightning bolts which lit up the night sky.
Among them was Kennington resident James Hendrick, who took an amazing image from his home in Canon Woods Way, facing out toward the William Harvey Hospital.
Network Rail senior technical officer James was unable to sleep at around 3am, so grabbed his camera to take his snap.
Amateur photographer Phelan McCormack, 17, braved the downpour to take photos of the storm in Folkestone at around 12.30am.
The media and film student, of Dolphins Road, took his Canon 600D camera to the Leas to take shots of the lightning over the sea.
“I set my camera to 25 seconds for a long exposure photograph and took photos for three hours constantly. This was my lucky break, getting this photo.”
For more weather related stories see pages 16 and 17
Regular photo contributor Linda Dodd captured the forks over her home in Hillbrow Road, near Ashford’s Victoria Park.
And professional snapper Dan Desboroughe you , Phelan’s photography tutor, sent us his vivid images of lightning over Folkestone.