UK weather: Met Office warns of gales, thunderstorms and heavy downpours as 30C highs come crashing to an end
YESTERDAY’S 30C high is set to end as the Met Office warns of gales and heavy downpours over the next couple of days.
Wisley, Surrey, reached 30.5C on Wednesday, the hottest location in the country, as Brits basked in the sun.
Yellow heat alerts were in force for every region of England yesterday except the north east, which was covered by a green alert.
But Met meteorologist Clare Nasir said temperatures were set to be “fresher” today as cloud and rain is set to hit the country from the west, buffeting Northern Ireland and parts of Scotland.
They are set to face unseasonably strong winds and rain, while Wales and the east of England will remain sunny.
Clare said: “Further west it is going to turn wet, with outbreaks of rain.
“Down towards the north east of England as well as Wales and you can see spots of rain extending towards Cornwall, Somerset, as well as Devon.”
Those areas will see outbreaks of rain this morning, while eastern parts, including eastern Scotland, will wake up with the sun.
The south east is expected to remain the warmest part of the country today, with the capital set to hit 25C.
Norwich is also forecast to reach 25C, while western areas and cities like Glasgow and Belfast are only set to reach the high teens.
Manchester is forecast to hit 20C, while Inverness further north will hit 18C.
Into the evening and overnight, rain and wind will pick up mainly affecting Scotland and northern England.
But the front will bring temperatures down for the whole country with the south east expected to reach temperatures only in the low 20s.
The north of the country could see heavy rain and temperatures will finish off the working week in the mid teens.
Met Meteorologist Aidan McGivern said: “A midweek peak in the heat but then temperatures closer to average from Thursday onwards.
“Much more agreeable temperatures, and although there will be a few spots of rain on Thursday afternoon as that cold front goes through, Friday, Saturday, Sunday we’re back to sunny spells, light winds and highs of 21C.”
Glastonbury festival forecast
Thousands of fans arriving at the Glastonbury Festival on Thursday can expect some showers but fears of a washout or scorching heatwave appear to have been allayed.
Mostly dry conditions and cooling temperatures are predicted across the weekend, after a drone show and fireworks over the Pyramid Stage announced the opening of the festival in Pilton, Somerset, on Wednesday night.
A Met Office spokesperson told the PA news agency that fans arriving on Thursday can expect conditions to be “a little cloudy” with the “odd spot of rain” before it turns drier with plenty of sunny spells in the afternoon and some isolated showers.
It is expected to be “a little breezy” with a high of 21C.
The weather across the weekend is expected to stay “mostly dry with plenty of sunny spells” and temperatures around average for June, dropping to 18C on Friday before rising to 19C and 21C on Saturday and Sunday respectively.
Glastonbury fans started arriving at the legendary festival at Worthy Farm yesterday during the scorching heat.
Motorists headed to the event have been warned to ignore their sat-navs and follow official signs to Glastonbury Festival to prevent further gridlocked roads.
A spokesperson for RAC Breakdown said: “It’s far better to follow the official directional signs to get to the right car park.
“You don’t want to end up at the wrong entrance – this creates more delays for everyone and is a sure-fire way of arriving at anything but the ‘Speed of Sound’.”
Many people will enjoy the cooler weather with the heat potentially dangerous for the public’s health.
Figures from NHS England, which runs the NHS website, show that there were 28,116 visits to the heat exhaustion page on June 24 and 25, compared with 13,598 over the weekend.
This amounted to an 107 per cent increase, with an average of one visit every six seconds.
The Met Office's five day forecast
Today:
A weakening band of cloud and rain moving southeast across England and Wales, followed by brighter, fresher weather. Rather cloudy, windy, cool and showery across Scotland and Northern Ireland. Remaining warm in the southeast but a return to average elsewhere.
Tonight:
Windy in the northwest with rain and showers at times. Mostly dry in the south and east and feeling much cooler than in recent nights.
Friday:
Breezy with showers in the north, some heavy across Scotland where it will feel cooler. Elsewhere, dry with sunny spells and light winds. Temperatures close to seasonal average.
Outlook for Saturday to Monday:
Some rain across the north with strong winds across the north and sunny spells further south through the weekend. Turing cloudier with rain moving in from the west on Monday.