UK weather alert: Tornado and flash floods could strike in just HOURS as storm brews across Britain (0.009569377990430622)

<iframe frameborder="0" height="100%" scrolling="no" src="https://www.gbnews.com/res/scraper/embed/?video_url=https%3A%2F%2Fmm-v2.simplestream.com%2Fiframe%2Fplayer.php%3Fkey%3D3Li3Nt2Qs8Ct3Xq9Fi5Uy0Mb2Bj0Qs%26player%3DGB003%26uvid%3D52921532%26type%3Dvod%26viously_id%3DXna0wBYKJDA" width="100%"></iframe><br/><p class="">The UK is set to be battered by flash floods and, in places, could be threatened by freak tornadoes as a major storm batters Britain.</p><p>In a weather blog post issued on Friday, Netweather forecaster Nick Finnis, warned of "heavy showers and thunderstorms" particularly across central, southern and eastern England.</p><h3></h3><br/><p><br/></p><p>This forecast has been echoed by the Met Office which issued a yellow thunderstorm warning this morning for East Midlands, East of England, London, South East and South West.</p><p>The alert stretches for a full 12 hours from 9am to 9pm on Saturday and warns "heavy showers and thunderstorms may lead to some disruption to transport and infrastructure".</p><h3></h3><br><p>Issuing further details about the yellow warning, the Met Office wrote: "Frequent heavy showers and thunderstorms are expected for much of Saturday before fading from the west during the mid to late afternoon.</p><p>"10-15 mm of rain could fall in less than an hour, whilst some places could see 30-40 mm of rain over several hours from successive showers and thunderstorms. </p><p>"Frequent lightning, hail and strong, gusty winds will be additional hazards."</p><p>Writing for Netweather, Finnis said: "Dry air entrainment aloft from the jet stream may enhance instability and bring strong winds aloft towards the surface as isolated strong gusts.</p><p>"With steep lapse rates and dry air entrainment, isolated large hail is possible too, while convergence and local backing of winds against the strong westerly flow aloft may enhance low-level shear enough to allow rotating updrafts and an isolated tornado risk.</p><p>"Localised intense rainfall may also lead to flash-flooding where storms train along convergence zones."</p><strong>LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:<br/></strong><ul><li><a href="https://www.gbnews.com/politics/zia-yusuf-new-role-resign-reform-chairman" target="_self">Zia Yusuf to RETURN to Reform with new role just 48 hours after resigning as party chairman</a></li><li><a href="https://www.gbnews.com/news/migrant-crisis-mass-migration-concern-terrorist-ideology-prevent" target="_self">Concern about mass migration is a 'terrorist ideology', claims Prevent</a></li><li><a href="https://www.gbnews.com/news/illegal-work-arrests-increase-uk-immigration-system" target="_self">Illegal work arrests increase by over 50% compared to last year</a></li></ul><h3></h3><br><img alt="\u200b\u200bWX Charts map shows heavy rain to strike across UK" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="e59fad6b711c546c4ebdc4a59688ec48" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" id="6679e" loading="lazy" src="https://www.gbnews.com/media-library/u200b-u200bwx-charts-map-shows-heavy-rain-to-strike-across-uk.jpg?id=60635584&width=980"/><h3></h3><br/><div class="embed-latest"></div><h3></h3><br/><p>However, in an update at 2pm on Saturday, Finnis added: "More organised rain than expected along a back-bent occlusion moving in across southwest England and moving east across south England has meant cloud cover has limited surface heating, thus convective initiation has struggled so far this afternoon.</p><p>"Therefore, Thunderstorm Risk has been downgraded across south England and East Anglia.</p><p>"Nevertheless, strong deep layer shear along the south and some organised strong convection evident along the south coast of southwest England this afternoon suggests a tornado can't be ruled out, while a risk of flash-flooding is also possible.</p><p>"Lightning is likely to be limited though in south England."</p><h3></h3><br/><img alt="\u200bNetweather map shows localised risk of tornadoes" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="981dc577ddc2f86e6c5efdeafc27f45f" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" id="da14d" loading="lazy" src="https://www.gbnews.com/media-library/u200bnetweather-map-shows-localised-risk-of-tornadoes.webp?id=60636969&width=980"/><h3></h3><br/><div class="embed-dontmiss"></div><h3></h3><br/><p>Looking ahead to Sunday and into next week, the Met Office forecast says heavy rain will be more frequent in the north of England.</p><p>It's online forecast reads: "Sunny spells and scattered showers, these heaviest and most frequent in the north. </p><p>"Turning cloudier from the northwest later with further showers outbreaks. Breezy for many and feeling rather cool."</p><p>Then in an outlook for early next week, it continues: "Changeable with a mixture of sunshine, scattered showers and longer spells of rain this week. </p><p>"Breezy and feeling cool at first, but temperatures on the rise by midweek."</p><h3></h3><br/><div class="embed-mostread"></div><h3></h3><br/><p>Looking even further between June 12 and June 21, the UK's national forecaster suggested drier conditions are liekly to return. </p><p>The Met Office wrote: "The start of this period is likely to be quite unsettled but also widely warm or very warm, perhaps locally hot in parts of the south and east. </p><p>"Some showers and thunderstorms are likely to affect most parts but there will also be some sunshine. </p><p>"Over the weekend and into the start of the following week, most parts will become drier. </p><p>"However, there may be another brief spell of rain with a risk of some thunderstorms, before high pressure more firmly builds in from the west. </p><p>"The rest of the following week looks like being mainly dry with variable cloud and some sunshine and often warm or very warm. </p><p>"The far north may be largely cloudy with a threat of some more rain at times though."<br/></p></br></br>