Heavy rain, lightning and hail battered parts of the UK on Sunday as the Met Office issued a yellow thunderstorm warning. The alert came into force just after 8am and remained in effect until midday, covering areas including Gloucester, Bath, Salisbury and Newport.
Forecasters warned of difficult driving conditions and potential disruption to train and bus services. There was a small chance that homes and businesses could experience power cuts, flooding or damage from water, lightning strikes, hail or strong winds.
Severe weather conditions
A band of heavy rain and thunderstorms moved north across the affected regions. Some locations could see 30mm to 40mm of rainfall accompanied by frequent lightning and hail.
Meteorologist Ellie Glaisyer said: "It's a very windy start for many of us out there this morning particularly across the west where we've seen some coastal gales and we'll continue to see some very strong winds as we go throughout much of Sunday. A bit of a brighter start across eastern areas this morning, plenty of hazy sunshine on offer through the afternoon but further west a bit of a wetter picture. Some outbreaks of heavy, showery rain push their way northwards as we go through this afternoon."
Eclipse tonight
The stormy weather comes before a total lunar eclipse expected to be visible in parts of England and Wales on Sunday night. The moon will turn deep red as Earth passes directly between the sun and moon, casting its shadow across the lunar surface for the first time since 2022.
Where skies are clear, the "blood moon" eclipse will be visible at around 7.30pm. The lunar surface will appear dark red as Earth's shadow blocks direct sunlight.
Sources used: "Met Office" Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.
