UK weather: Met Office gives update on incoming heatwave as Britain battered by rain

More rain and thunderstorms were set to batter parts of the UK as the Met Office issued fresh warnings before summer heat returned.

Four yellow warnings were issued by the forecaster on Tuesday as heavy rains posed a risk to driving and rail conditions and shut down schools.

The warnings, which covered large parts of London, Birmingham, Exeter, parts of Plymouth, and the Scottish Highlands, lasted until 8pm on Tuesday night.

Heavy showers are expected to continue on Wednesday, but the yellow warnings are not in place anymore.

The Met Office, however, has warned that scattered rain will continue in some parts, including in southwest England, accompanied by hail, thunder and lightning.

The weather will continue to remain warm for many and locally hot and humid in the southeast.

“On Wednesday, it is going to be generally across the whole of the UK another day of sunny spells and some scattered showers,” said Greg Dewhurst, a spokesperson for the Met Office.

“Showers could be heavy and thundery at times, particularly across the north and west of the UK.

“At the moment we don’t have any warnings for thunderstorms but there could be potentially some more that get issued and perhaps at short notice.”

The unsettled theme continues as the UK is affected by a low-pressure in the Atlantic waters, which is likely to continue on Wednesday, though the frequency and intensity of showers is expected to be reduced slightly from Tuesday.

“What’s chiefly responsible for these thundery showers is that the UK is under the influence of low pressure, with daytime heating helping to develop unstable air which can be responsible for these bursts of heavy rain,” Met Office chief meteorologist Steve Willington said.

Showers are most likely to exert their influence more frequently in eastern areas of Scotland, as well as parts of northeast England, south Wales and parts of the southwest.

Many areas will see a good deal of dry weather on Wednesday, however, with more settled conditions in the southeast.

While some showers could again develop across parts of central and southern England on Thursday, a shift in the weather type is in focus as the weekend nears.

“More of a northwest/southeast split in the UK weather is developing from Friday and into the weekend,” Met Office deputy chief meteorologist Steven Keates said.

“High pressure will begin to establish itself from the southeast, allowing a good deal of settled weather through the weekend, with temperatures likely building towards, or slightly exceeding, 30C in some spots.”

“However, it’s a much more unsettled picture to the northwest through the weekend, with weather fronts pushing in from the Atlantic bringing more in the way of rain and some gusty coastal winds, especially for those in Scotland and Northern Ireland.”

The more settled conditions for the southern and eastern parts of England through the weekend and into early next week could result in heatwave criteria being met in some spots, though not everywhere is expected to reach their respective threshold for the required three consecutive days.

With many people heading to Glastonbury ahead of the weekend festival, the forecast is set to be fair for much of the weekend, the Met Office said.

There’s small chance of some residual showers during Thursday in the city, though “things look to be more settled for the weekend,” the forecaster said.

Friday should be witness to a good deal of dry, sunny weather, with temperatures likely to peak around 25C.

The turn to hotter weather for the rest of the country will also take place on Friday, according to the Met Office, as it forecasts “very warm” conditions to come back once again after a few unsettled days.

Over the last few days, heavy rains and thunderstorms have brought life to a halt in several parts of the UK, with flash flooding and travel disruptions.

Around 20,000 easyJet passengers were grounded due to bad weather over the weekend, with the carrier offering a passenger booked to fly from Gatwick to Edinburgh the option of travelling via Berlin.

In the bigger picture, this summer is set to be hotter than unusual, with weather maps showing a shift towards El Nino in the Pacific, a phenomenon associated with warmer waters in the world’s biggest ocean.

Meanwhile, unusual and “unprecedented” warming of waters around the coasts of the UK and Ireland is worrying scientists as the North Atlantic witnesses one of the worst marine heatwaves.

The water around the UK is under a category 5, categorised as a “beyond extreme” heatwave, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.