There is welcome relief ahead for the Brits who have sweltered through their second heatwave in a matter of weeks.
An amber health warning was put in place for huge swathes of England this weekend with temperatures reaching the mid-thirties for days on end.
Most of the UK baked through the sweltering weather, only a few weeks after records were smashed for the country’s hottest day ever as temperatures topped 40C.
The Met Office said the hottest day of this heatwave was always likely to be Saturday with a chance of temperatures reaching 36C, making an uncomfortable weekend as Sunday was only set to be a few degrees lower.
But now it’s peaked Brits can look forward to a hopefully cooler other side.
However, there was more bad news from weather experts who have now issued amber and yellow warnings for thunderstorms over parts of the UK in the wake of the heatwave.
Travel disruption is expected as the severe weather will unleash torrential downpours causing flooding, with the warning in place fro later this evening (Sunday).
The Met Office said the exact time the heatwave would end would be just before midnight Sunday night, at 11:59pm, but warned come Monday higher temperatures might persist in places.
Met Office Chief Meteorologist Frank Saunders said: “Persistent high pressure over the UK means temperatures have been rising day-on-day through this week and it is important people plan for the heat.
“Temperatures are expected to peak at possibly 36C on Saturday and Sunday. Even beyond this, hot conditions will persist in parts of the south of the UK as far as late Monday, and it will turn increasingly humid.
“We will also see some warm nights, with temperatures in some places staying in the low 20s Celsius.”
But even when the heatwave official ends, the entire UK needs to brace for thunderstorms and the Met Office has issued three days of continuous yellow thunderstorm warnings.
On Monday, the entire UK is warned to brace for torrential weather. By the Tuesday the warning is only in place for England and by Wednesday only parts of the East of England, the South East and South West are affected.
The rain will also be welcome as the country has been parched with a lack of rainfall in recent months. Last month was the driest July on records with some places getting as little as half a centimetre of rain.
Whilst some parts of the UK had such little rainfall prior, others could see as much as 50mm of rainfall in just three hours during the coming storms.
Met Office Deputy Chief Meteorologist Jason Kelly said: “The current hot weather will make way for a thundery breakdown from the west, which will spread south and east in the early part of next week. Ahead of this, isolated but intense thunderstorms are possible Sunday, Monday and Tuesday.
“The warnings highlight the chance of some places seeing around 50mm of rain falling in a three-hour period in the north, with some areas further south possibly seeing around 30mm of rain in a three-hour period. Hail and frequent lightning are also possible as part of these downpours and represents an additional hazard.”
The heatwave has put a strain on the country as hundreds of households woke up Saturday in Surrey without a water supply and wildfires became a persistent problem.
Three water companies – Welsh Water, Southern Water, and South East Water – have all imposed hosepipe bans, while Yorkshire Water has announced a ban will start on August 26 and Thames Water is planning one in the coming weeks.
On Friday night, fire crews in Derbyshire tackled a huge blaze, with four fire engines at the scene in Creswell, Worksop.
Footage shared online showed flames filling the horizon and large plumes of smoke in the sky above a residential area.
In Dorset, a team of firefighters worked through the night to bring a wildfire at Studland under control, which was believed to have been sparked by a disposable barbecue.
Dorset Police said on Saturday firefighters had discovered an unexploded piece of ammunition believed to date to the Second World War on the scorched heathland.
The force said a bomb disposal unit would be attending and warned the public in the surrounding area they may hear a loud bang as they dispose of the device.
