Thunderstorm yellow weather warning remains in place for Leeds

A yellow thunderstorm warning issued by the Met Office covers much of England, Wales and parts of Scotland, with the potential of hail, frequent lightning and flash flooding in some areas.

Temperatures reached 34.6C (94F) in St James's Park in central London on Wednesday, marking the first time since at least 1961 that there had been six consecutive days of 34C and above.

-> Yorkshire residents awoken by lightning bolts as Leeds set to bask in 30 degree temperaturesIt was also the third day in a row of the mercury hitting 35C (95F) or above, with Wednesday's highest temperature of 35.4C recorded at Heathrow, according to the Met Office.

Temperatures in Leeds reached 30 degrees and a yellow weather warning is in place.

Forecaster Greg Dewhurst said: "It's not often we get temperatures this high over several days, and that is triggering thunderstorms across parts of England and Wales."

Severe storms could see 30 to 40mm of rain falling in less than an hour in some places, which comes after heavy downpours lashed large parts of Scotland and caused flooding on Tuesday evening.

"If rain is falling on places that have been quite hot and dry, and the ground is quite hard, the rain doesn't have anywhere to go, and from that we can see flash flooding," he added.

A yellow thunderstorm warning which covers the majority of England, excluding parts of the north-east, has been issued by the Met Office for Thursday.

Further unsettled weather is predicted throughout the afternoon and evening.

Mr Dewhurst added: "Generally, the rest of the week remains unsettled with showers, some of them thundery and heavy, but there will still be some warm, sunny spells at times too."

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Laura Collins