Yellow thunderstorm warnings have been issued across the UK, with the Met Office warning of heavy downpours and flash flooding after weeks of extreme heat.
The warnings are set to come into place later on Wednesday, and cover large swathes of northern England, Northern Ireland and parts of Scotland.
The forecaster has warned that homes and businesses could be flooded and there may be disruption to transport services and power cuts.
It follows what is likely to be the hottest summer on record, with five heatwaves leaving 71.3 per cent of the country in drought.
The yellow weather warnings are set to come into force at noon in Northern Ireland and last until 11.59pm on Wednesday, while parts of northeast Scotland are under the alert from 2pm until 9pm.
Large parts of north of England, covering Manchester, Liverpool and Newcastle upon Tyne, have been issued a warning from 7pm on Wednesday until 10am on Thursday.
The thunderstorm warnings come as parts of the UK were hit by “heavy pulses” of rain early on Wednesday, but forecasters and officials warned downpours this week would not solve the drought overnight.
Met Office data showed up to 23mm of rain fell in parts of central southern Lancashire in the 12 hours to 6am on Wednesday, with up to 13mm recorded in parts of Northern Ireland and between 6-10mm across southwest England.
In an online forecast, Met Office meteorologist Aidan McGivern said Wednesday would be a “very showery day” across the UK, with Northern Ireland and areas in western and central Scotland seeing “frequent showers with heavy downpours, hail and thunder”.
The cooler and wetter conditions come after the UK’s fifth heatwave of the summer, during which the hottest day of the year was recorded in Kew Gardens, London, on Thursday when the temperature reached 38.1C.
The UK is facing increasingly severe weather extremes such as heatwaves, droughts and flooding – with a risk of surface water floods as heavy rain falls on baked dry ground – as a result of climate change, caused mostly by burning fossil fuels for power stations, vehicles, heating buildings and industry.
All of Wales, and nearly three-quarters of England, are in drought as a result of the hot dry conditions.
The Environment Agency and Natural Resources Wales have applied to the English and Welsh governments for a drought order for the River Severn, warning of the impact the conditions are having on the Severn’s habitats and surrounding farmers.
If granted, it would require Severn Trent Water, South Staffordshire Water, Bristol Water and Hafren Dyfrdwy to reduce the amount they abstract from the river by 5 per cent, which they have said will not affect water supplies.
The order would also impose a cap on the amount of water the Canal and River Trust could take for the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal and reduce releases from a reservoir at the river’s headwaters to stretch the amount of available water over a longer period to support fish and other wildlife.
The warnings come after overnight rain which saw Wisley, in Surrey, break its 62-day dry streak, the longest of any area in the UK, with 1.6mm falling in the early hours.
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