Homes were flooded, streets turned into rivers and properties were set on fire by lightning strikes as Britain’s heatwave was interrupted today by dramatic thunderstorms and a month’s worth of rain in just three hours.
Residents in Scotland described ‘Biblical levels of flooding’ but towns in South East England have come ‘perilously close’ to running out of water with the prospect of the first hosepipe ban in eight years rearing its head.
It comes as the very hot temperatures gripping parts of Britain continued today with highs of 97F (37C) expected in southern England this afternoon, continuing the heatwave which began last Wednesday.
Today should be the sixth day in a row of the mercury hitting at least 93F (34C), which would be the longest run on record and confirm country’s most severe heatwave ever while a level three heat health alert remains in place.
There are 22 flood alerts or warnings in Scotland and five in England as a landslide shut a road in Fife and there was a major outage at an exchange in Edinburgh affecting 100,000 customers’ broadband on BT, EE and Plusnet.
A house burst into flames in Falkirk after being struck by lightning, while Church of Scotland minister Peter Johnston, who is based in Aberdeen, tweeted this morning: ‘Biblical levels of flooding… never seen it this bad.’
Cars on a flooded road in Aberdeen this morning following overnight heavy rain across parts of Scotland
A flooded road in Aberdeen is pictured this morning following heavy rain and thunderstorms overnight in parts of Scotland
Flooding in Perth, Scotland, is pictured this morning as thunderstorm warnings are still current for most of the UK
Cars sit in floodwater in Perth, Scotland, this morning following thunderstorms and heavy rain overnight in parts of Britain
Flooding in Perth, Scotland, this morning as the Met Office issued a storm warning for all of England and Scotland
The heavy rain and thunderstorms caused travel disruption and flooding across several parts of Scotland this morning, with rail passengers and motorists facing problems due to the conditions.
ScotRail said that due to ‘extremely heavy rain’ and flooding on the railway, services will be delayed or cancelled. Passengers were advised to check before travelling and consider alternative transport where possible.
On the roads, some vehicles were recovered after they were abandoned amid flooding on the M8, which was partly closed for a time but later reopened.
A Police Scotland spokesman said: ‘We were made aware of flooding on the M8 between junctions 5 and 6 in Lanarkshire shortly before 4am. No injuries have been reported and officers have assisted partner agencies.’
The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said it was called to multiple reports of flooding in the Perthshire area, with many domestic properties affected.
Perth and Kinross Council said several roads in the area were impassable due to flooding.
At 7am, the council tweeted that Feus Road/Marshall Place/Wallace Crescent/Crammond Place/Crieff Road/Glasgow Road and A912 at Bogle Bridge were affected, while surface water was causing problems in many other areas.
Pictures posted on social media showed cars half-submerged in floodwater in streets in Perth. In Fife, a landslide caused the closure of the A921 between Kinghorn and Burntisland. Police urged motorists to use an alternative route.
BT’s incident management team said a major outage at an exchange in Edinburgh, caused by the weather, was affecting about 100,000 customers’ broadband on BT, EE and Plusnet in the city and surrounding area.
It was reported at 6.30am and engineers were on site working on the issue.
The Met Office has issued a yellow warning of thunderstorms for the eastern half of Scotland which is in force until midnight tonight.
It warned that some places are likely to see ‘further severe thunderstorms’, but with ‘significant uncertainty in location and timing’.
A spectacular lightning show lights up the skies over Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales overnight amid the severe conditions
Lightning is seen over Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire overnight as thunderstorms hit parts of Britain
Lightning is seen over Mow Cop in Staffordshire overnight as parts of the country faces severe thunderstorms
The sun rises over fishing boats at anchor in the sea off of Selsey in West Sussex this morning
The warning covers Central, Tayside and Fife, Angus, Clackmannanshire, Dundee, Falkirk, Fife, Perth and Kinross and Stirling.
The Met Office has issued a yellow storm warning for all of England and the eastern half of Scotland, with a more serious amber warning for eastern Scotland between Edinburgh, Inverness and Aberdeen.
An amber warning means people should be on alert for flash flooding and building damage from lightning strikes, floodwaters and hailstones.
Delays to public transport, difficult driving conditions and possible road closures could also follow, while deep and fast floodwater could be a threat to human life.
Under its yellow warning, the Met Office is predicting storms in particular for the north-west, north Wales and the West Midlands for today and tomorrow.
Chief meteorologist Steve Ramsdale said in these areas ‘exceptional rainfall totals could be seen of 60mm in an hour with a very small chance of 150mm of rainfall in three or four hours’.
Ten properties in Lancashire were affected by flooding yesterday following overnight storms, the Environment Agency said.
The rainfall caused the Burrow Beck waterway in Scotforth, south Lancaster, to rise by almost a metre in less than three hours, the agency’s flood risk manager Andy Brown said.
The Environment Agency said further heavy showers could cause more flooding in ‘mostly urban areas’ of England until Friday, with some homes being affected.
Meanwhile the prospect of the first hosepipe ban in eight years reared its head yesterday – just as dramatic storms began to sweep the country.
Families have been using record amounts of water to fill paddling pools and relieve parched gardens in the heatwave which has hit 100F (37.8C) in parts.
But while some towns have come ‘perilously close’ to running out of water, other areas have been hit by thunderstorms. Wales saw hailstones ‘the size of golf balls’ on Monday night and today the South faces a risk of flooding in downpours.
The increased water demand during the scorching weather is blamed on millions still working from home combined with families taking staycations.
Also, many families who took time to improve their gardens during lockdown have now been watering their plants. Water companies in the driest parts have now urged them to cut their usage.
South East Water has warned that their demand – a record 696million litres last Friday dropping slightly to 673million on Monday – was unsustainable.
And bosses have urged families to avoid using ‘water-guzzling garden hoses and sprinklers’. Steve Andrews, head of central operation at the company, said: ‘When demand is this high, we can’t treat enough raw water and get it through to all customers.’
He added: ‘The average paddling pool needs 530 litres of water to fill them – more than three times the total daily amount of water usually used by one person.’
Due to the shortages, around 300 households in parts of Sussex lost water supplies altogether over the weekend, with many more experiencing interrupted supplies.