Thunderstorms, downpours and strong winds to batter East tomorrow

The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning for Wednesday 20th October.

Author: Emma HartPublished 19th Oct 2021

The Met Office has issued an eight-hour thunderstorm warning, covering the West of our region.

Heavy rain and winds of up to 50mph are expected.

Forecasters say there is a small risk that homes and businesses could be flooded or hit by lightning strikes.

We are being warned to expect possible power cuts and travel disruption as well.

The yellow weather warning will be in force between 4am and 12pm on Wednesday 20th October.

What can we expect?

1) There is a small chance that homes and businesses could be flooded quickly, with damage to some buildings from floodwater, lightning strikes, hail or strong winds

2) Spray and sudden flooding could lead to difficult driving conditions and some road closures

3) Where flooding or lightning strikes occur, there is a chance of delays and some cancellations to train and bus services

4) There is a slight chance that power cuts could occur and other services to some homes and businesses could be lost

5) There is a small chance of damage to trees by strong and gusty winds

The Met Office says: "An area of heavy rain and thunderstorms will move quickly eastwards across Wales and southwestern England into parts of central, southern and eastern England during Wednesday morning.

"Many areas will see a spell of rain whilst some places will be affected by thunderstorms bringing a brief period of heavy rain, lightning, and strong, gusty winds with hail also affecting some spots.

"Gusts will tend to peak at 40-50 mph, but whilst very unlikely in any one place, much stronger winds are possible here and there, then potentially damaging some structures".

Hear all the latest news from across the UK on the hour, every hour, on Greatest Hits Radio on DAB, smartspeaker, at greatesthitsradio.co.uk, and on the Rayo app.