Met Office Names 12 Areas in England and Scotland Set for Heavy Rain and Thunderstorms on Thursday

The Met Office has named 12 areas across England and Scotland set to be hit by heavy rain and thunderstorms on Thursday, with yellow weather warnings in place.

Downpours will lash across most of the UK on Thursday, and it will be thundery in places. Weather maps from the Met Office show the low pressure will sweep southeastwards throughout the day. Rain will be the heaviest across the East of England during the afternoon.

Weather Warnings and Impacts

Weather warnings for thunderstorms are in place, issued by the Met Office. One concerns large swathes of northern England, such as Greater Manchester, Merseyside and West Yorkshire, where flooding of homes and businesses is likely. Some short-term loss of power and other services is possible as well, forecasters stress.

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Temperatures are falling too. The Met Office recorded a high of 28.6C on Tuesday in Bournemouth, Devon, but 14C is likely in other parts on Thursday. Parts of northern England will see the mercury drop further to around 12C on Friday, meteorologists understand.

Forecast and Context

The Met Office's forecast for Thursday reads: "Sunny spells and scattered showers. The focus for the heaviest showers will transfer to other areas of England and Wales, with thunder again possible. Feeling cool in the northerly breeze."

The unsettled period follows rain on Wednesday — the first most of the UK had seen in weeks — which came as a welcome relief following the latest heatwave. Photographs show Brits embracing the showers, which finally arrived after a long drought. More than half of England, though, remains in official drought. Last month was in fact the driest July on record for England and Wales, reports the Express. Southern England has been among the worst affected, registering its driest month since records began in 1836. While the anticipated shift in weather conditions might offer some respite to drought-stricken regions, the Environment Agency has warned that only prolonged and significant rainfall will be sufficient to genuinely improve the circumstances.