UK heatwave may end today with a thunderstorm
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London: The heatwave that has been taunting the United Kingdom since July is expected to end today. The weather office has predicted thunderstorms for the day.
After experiencing the driest July since 1935, the country may see flash floods caused by sudden rain. The sudden fluctuation in temperature may also spark wildfires. Dan Stroud, a meteorologist at the Met Office, told The Telegraph that the sudden change in weather is due to an alteration in air pressure.
The thunderstorm is expected to last for three days.
Every region except the north of Scotland has yellow alerts in place for thunderstorms till Tuesday, reported BBC. Scotland and Northern Ireland received rain and lower temperatures on Sunday. Other parts of England are expected to get rain today.
The weather experts think the downpour will not bring complete relief from drought because "it is almost the wrong sort of rain". Stroud said the strong sunshine has heated up the ground. The baked dry ground will find it hard to absorb water from the rain quickly.
He called the air unstable and said: "As we've had some very high ground temperatures, it doesn't actually take too much for the air to become even more unstable and for thundershowers to develop quickly."
After witnessing extreme high temperatures crossing 40°C in recent months, eight areas in England now have a drought. Three water companies – Welsh Water, Southern Water, and South East Water – have imposed hosepipe bans. This has also sparked wildfires across the country.