Hot spell to trigger violent storms
VIOLENT thunderstorms triggered by extreme heat are expected today with torrential downpours bringing more than an inch of rain.
Forecasters have warned of flash floods in the South with the weather cooling off by the weekend.
The Met Office has issued a severe weather alert for the region with the rest of the country on alert throughout the week.
Chief forecaster Dan Suri said yesterday: “Outbreaks of rain developing over parts of the South on Tuesday are expected to become heavier and more widespread through the course of the day.
“Please be aware of possible localised surface water flooding where the heaviest rain occurs.”
The warning comes as Britain enjoys the warmest May weather for four years with above-average temperatures forecast for the next few days.
Areas which escape the torrential downpours this week can look forward to more blue skies and sunshine with temperatures hovering in the low 70Fs.
The North can expect the best of the weather today before the South warms up again tomorrow.
Thermometers will nudge 70F (21C) in Scotland and the Northwest, with highs of 66F forecast elsewhere. The South will be warmer from tomorrow with the mercury set to hit 73F by Thursday.
However, by the end of the week the warm blast will be nudged away by cooler northerly winds.
Temperatures are due to drop around 10 degrees compared to last weekend which saw the mercury hit 81F (27.1C) in London – the hottest May temperature since 2012.
Forecasters warn sun-lovers to make the most of the hot weather.
Met Office forecaster Emma Sharples said: “It is turning unsettled with a band of rain across the South on Tuesday, moving northwards through the week. This weekend will feel very different to last weekend with temperatures about 10 degrees lower than they have been.”
James Madden, forecaster at Exacta Weather, said: “We are expecting maximum temperatures of around 73F until Thursday before a change to more near normal temperatures and some scattered showers in among periods of sunshine.”
A teenage boy is feared to have drowned after going for a swim in the River Thames during the weekend’s hot weather.
Ellis Downes, 16, of Harwell, near Didcot, Oxfordshire, disappeared while playing in the water with friends at Culham, near Abingdon, on Saturday evening.
His sister Alex, a nursery assistant, has appealed for help to find him. She said: “It’s just a horrible waiting game. We need as many people as possible to help find him.”
Police are investigating.