UK weather: Thunderstorm warning upgraded to amber amid increased risk of flooding and travel disruption
Forecasters have upgraded a weather warning for a large part of central England with areas told to expect an increased risk of lightning and heavy rainfall.
The thunderstorms warning across the Midlands was upgraded to amber from yellow by the Met Office on Monday afternoon.
The warning, in place until 7pm on Monday, means the region can expect to see heavy rainfall, lightning, strong winds and hail.
The Met Office said road closures, rail disruption and power cuts are likely – while some communities could be temporarily cut off by flooding.
The amber warning zone also stretches down to the north-western edge of London.
Three other yellow thunderstorm warnings remain in place until 9pm on Monday and cover parts of Scotland, Northern Ireland, much of southern and central England and most of Wales.
Forecasters have said the heavy downpours bring the increased risk for flash flooding and may cause disruption to motorists on the roads and disrupt bus and rail services.
A large part of central England has been upgraded to an amber warning for thunderstorms. Pic: Met Office
The forecast follows a weekend of scorching temperatures and heavy rainfall.
A temperature of 32C (89.6F) was recorded at Kew Gardens in southwest London on Sunday and much of the UK was hotter than Monaco and the French Riviera where temperatures languished in the low 20s.
However, temperatures fell just short of this year’s record high of 32.2C (89.96F) which was reached on Saturday in Chertsey, Surrey.
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A total of 28.6mm of rain fell in Charlwood, Surrey, on Sunday afternoon, which is almost half the average for the whole month of June.
Met Office meteorologist Dan Stroud said potentially a month’s worth of rain could fall within a short period.
He said: “Parts of Wales and England will see 30mm of rain in an hour, 60 to 80mm in some spots.
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“North parts of Northern Ireland, southwest Scotland and the Highlands could see 20 to 30mm of rain in an hour during the thunderstorms, and 40 to 50mm in some spots.
“Potentially we are looking at a month’s worth of rain falling.
“The highest temperatures will be around Birmingham and in Wales.”
There is a chance of flash flooding in places, according to the Met Office. File pic
A heat-health alert for hot weather remains in place until 9am on Tuesday.
The five regions of England under an amber alert – when the heat is likely to impact the wider population, not just the most vulnerable – are:
• West Midlands
• East Midlands
• East of England
• South East
• South West
A further yellow alert – when the weather is likely to impact vulnerable groups such as those with underlying health conditions, or the elderly – is in place for:
• North East
• North West
• Yorkshire and Humber
• London
The alert, issued by the UK Health Security Agency and the Met Office, covers England and provides warnings of hot weather which might impact the health of members of the public – and is designed to assist healthcare workers who are managing periods of “extreme temperatures”.
Slightly cooler temperatures are on the way from Tuesday onwards, with Thursday and Friday in the mid-high 20s, Mr Stroud added.
He said: “We are likely to see the hot weather continue although high pressure is starting to build in.
“That’s going to kill off the showers and moving into next week the temperature will dip slightly to the mid to high 20s.”
A workman saved a seven-year-old boy from a burning car in the aftermath of a deadly crash caused by a suicidal ex-pilot, an inquest has heard.
The schoolboy’s rescue came following the collision on the M6, which killed former RAF man Richard Woods and four others, in October last year.
Last week a coroner ruled that Woods, 40, took his own life by deliberately driving his Skoda the wrong way down the motorway while drunk and hitting a Toyota Yaris head-on.
The driver of the Toyota, Jaroslaw Rossa, 42, was also killed, along with his two sons, Filip, 15, and Dominic, seven, and his partner Jade McEnroe, 33.
Cockermouth Coroner’s Court heard on Thursday that Ms McEnroe’s son was also in the car but survived after workman Gavin Walsh came to his rescue at the scene, which was near Tebay services in Cumbria.
In a statement to the inquest, Mr Walsh said he was a passenger in a transit van travelling to Scotland when he witnessed the crash.
He jumped out of the vehicle and used a jack to smash the rear windscreen of the Toyota and pulled the boy out of the burning vehicle.
Mr Walsh said: “We really did try, I can assure everyone we did our best. We only had minimal time.
“I saved a life that day and I hope never to witness anything like that again.”
He added that he has never stopped thinking about the boy, and said: “I hope we will meet again one day and I will give you a massive hug.”
At the time, the family were returning to Glasgow from a trip to Legoland in Windsor, Berkshire.
The inquest heard that Wood, who was travelling at a speed of at least 65mph, would have been charged with manslaughter had he survived.
Recording conclusions of unlawful killing, Cumbria assistant coroner Margaret Taylor said: “I found that Jaroslaw, Jade, Filip and Dominic died as a consequence of the unlawful acts of another driver.”
The inquest heard how Mr Woods, from Cambridgeshire, had served a distinguished 14-year career in the RAF and was a flight instructor for BAE Systems at the time of his death.
Jade McEnroe. Pic: Cumbria Constabulary
Dominic and Filip. Pic: Cumbria Constabulary
In Ms Taylor’s record of inquest, Mr Woods was said to have been experiencing “a number of stressors in his life” and had a “history of harmful use of alcohol”.
Following the crash, he was found to be nearly four times over the legal drink-drive limit and a two-thirds empty bottle of gin was found in his car.
On the day of his death, concerns had been raised over his behaviour at a work conference near Preston in Lancashire.
Mr Woods failed to return to his seat after lunch and was later spotted driving erratically and swerving across three northbound carriageway lanes on the M6.
After pulling onto the hard shoulder, he then proceeded to U-turn and drove southward on lane three.
Filip, Dominic and Jaroslaw Rossa. Pic: Cumbria Constabulary
Detective Sergeant Deborah Story, from Cumbria Police, told the inquest that Mr Woods would have been prosecuted on four counts of manslaughter had he lived.
She said hypothetical charges of murder were considered by detectives but not thought appropriate because of a lack of information that Mr Woods knew the family or anything that provided a link between them.
Ms McEnroe’s parents, Marie McEnroe and George McNellis, told the coroner they thought it was “murder”.
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A statement from the mother of Filip and Dominic, and the ex-wife of Mr Rossa, Kamila, was read out at the inquest.
She said Mr Rossa, known as Jarek, was born in Poland where they became a couple and went on to have three boys.
He loved playing computer games and had “lots of friends”, she said, and worked at the Wagamama restaurant in Silverburn, Glasgow.
She said she was “devastated” over the deaths, adding: “Our lives will never be the same.
“I am heartbroken at the passing of my beloved angels Filip and Dominic.”
Marie McEnroe said her daughter, a spa therapist, had been in a relationship with Mr Rossa for about two-and-a-half years.
She said Jade had been a “brilliant mother” to her only child, was “really happy” with Mr Rossa and it was “lovely chaos” when all the boys were playing together.
Ms McEnroe added: “Life changed forever that day”.
Ms Taylor praised the “selfless acts of bravery” from those in the aftermath of the collision, including Mr Walsh, who she said went towards the burning car “without hesitation for his own safety”.
The coroner added: “Without his swift response, Jade’s child would also have perished.”
Addressing the bereaved family members, she said: “Your loss is unimaginable but you have conducted yourself with dignity and I thank you for that. I wish you strength for the future.”
Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK.
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