Warmer weather is expected to return across the UK after flash floods caused mass disruption and damage in parts of the south-west overnight on Friday.
The Met Office said that by Wednesday next week, temperatures across the UK will be hitting the mid to high twenties and conditions will be “much drier”.
And there is good news for those struggling to sleep in the hot and humid conditions.
Forecaster Simon Partridge told The i Paper : “We’ve cancelled warnings across the southern part as conditions have improved.
“There will be drier weather heading into Sunday, meaning it will be easier to sleep in the next few days.
“By the middle of next week, there will be high pressure sat over the UK meaning sunny weather.”
Parts of Kent were hit by lightening strikes and heavy thunderstorms overnight into Saturday morning, leaving residents in Dover dealing with flash flooding and subsequent travel chaos.
According to the Met Office, more than 30,000 lightning strikes were recorded. They said the “vast majority” of lightening struck over the sea.
On social media, residents shared videos of cars submerged under water and water rising inside their houses.
Some spoke of how neighbours came together to clear drains to help flooding in the streets, whilst others recounted how power outages resulted in blackouts.
Mr Partridge said that highs of 29°C on Friday gave the warm humid air the energy to produce thunderstorms.
He added: “There was just over 50mm of rain, that’s about a month’s worth. The average rainfall of the whole of June fell in three or four hours”.
Bus operator Stagecoach cancelled services between Dover and Canterbury due to the “severe flooding” and Kent Police shut down the A256 in Tilmanstone, where one driver was sitting on the roof of their car to escape the floodwater.
The floods followed a Met Office amber warning on Friday that alerted people to oncoming thunderstorms across parts of southeast England and parts of East Anglia.
The Met Office later updated a yellow weather warning to cover thunderstorms across parts of northern England and Scotland.
Mr Partridge added: “The vast majority of strikes were in the English Channel. Those on the coast saw a lot of lightening out to sea. For those who enjoy it, it was quite a good spectacle”.
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Bands of thunderstorms are expected to move across the Irish sea this afternoon, meaning parts of Cumbria and Scotland could see heavy rain. This may lead to poor visibility and difficult driving conditions.
Weather warnings for areas north of Liverpool and Manchester have been issued.
Met Office Chief Meterologist Steve Ramsdale said: “While the warnings cover the areas of the country most at risk of seeing thunderstorms, not everyone within a warning area will experience a thunderstorm. For many, it will remain dry much of the time.”
Meanwhile, Yellow Heat Health Alerts have been issued by the UK Health Security Agency, running until 8am on Sunday.
These alerts, which are activated when temperatures could impact people’s help and lead vulnerable people to require healthcare services, cover the East Midlands, London and the South East.
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