Shropshire braced for record-breaking heat amid thunderstorm warnings - in pictures and video
Shropshire was braced for what could be its hottest day ever today following spectacular thunder and lightning storms earlier in the week.
People across Shropshire were woken on Tuesday night/Wednesday morning by strobes of lightning followed by harsh cracks of thunder, many of whom caught the stunning display of nature on camera.
BUt today forecasters are expecting temperatures to soar possibility beating the July record of 98F (36.7C).
Forecasters believe more than 40,000 bolts of lightning crashed down across the country - many of which centred on the Midlands in the early hours of yesterday.
See the Met Office forecast for today here:
Firefighters from Wem Fire Station weathered the storm as they were called out to flooding in High Street at about 1.20am yesterday , while crews from Whitchurch geared up half an hour later to reports of a church on fire caused by a lightning strike, which turned out to be a false alarm.
Other emergency services also bore witness to the rare sights, with one ambulance worker catching the scenes in Shrewsbury.
The Met Office has issued yellow weather warnings for thunderstorms in parts of Shropshire, including Telford, for today and Friday.
Public Health England urged people to keep hydrated, find shade and protect their skin in the sun.
Met Office forecaster Marco Petagna said: “Today we’ll see an east and west split with showers in the western parts of England but the eastern parts will look very hot with 36°C to 37°C (96.8°F).”
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He said there was a 60 per cent chance the weather could surpass the current July record of 36.7°C and a 30 per cent chance of going over the all-time UK temperature record of 38.5°C (101.3°F) which was recorded in Faversham, Kent, in August 2003.
Mr Petagna warned: “Anywhere across England could see some thundery showers”.
Speed restrictions are to be introduced on some rail lines because of the heat, Network Rail has said.
In a statement it said that "in some locations we may have to introduce speed restrictions during the hottest part of the day at vulnerable locations as slower trains exert lower forces on the track and reduce the likelihood of buckling".
Birmingham New Street station took to social media to reiterate warnings for potential delays due to the searing heat.
Nick King, of Network Rail added: "Keeping passengers safe and moving are our top priorities during this heatwave.
"That's why we sometimes have to put speed restriction on to prevent our rails - that can be over 20 degrees hotter than air temperatures - from buckling which can derail a train and cause huge delays.
"Passengers should check before they travel, by visiting their train operator's website or National Rail Enquiries."
The Met Office showcased the fierce thunderstorms which swept across Shropshire.
And the storms raged on into northern parts of the region into the early hours before moving onto north England and Scotland.
Thunderstorms moved into southern and western areas late on Tuesday evening, with the Met Office issuing a yellow severe weather warning for most of England, Wales and Scotland until 9am on Wednesday.
Many Twitter users posted to say they had been woken up by the thunderstorms amid temperatures of around 80F (27C) as darkness fell yesterday evening.
A block of flats in Nuneaton and a house in Bedworth were struck by lightning, Warwickshire Fire Service reported.
North Wales was the wettest area overnight, getting 15mm of rain in one hour.
But by Wednesday morning, much of the country was already experiencing temperatures far above normal for this time of year.
"Quite a lot of places are back up to 23 or 24 degrees already (at 5am)," Met Office meteorologist Emma Smith said.
"It's normally 13 or 14 degrees at this time of year, so that's 10 degrees above average."
It comes after temperatures across England exceeded 30C (86F) on Tuesday, with forecasters predicting even hotter temperatures on Wednesday.
"It will get to 35 degrees on Wednesday, with a small chance it will get to 36C," said Ms Smith.
The highest overnight average temperature ever seen in the UK was 23.3C (73.94F) in July 1948.
Ms Smith said there is a possibility this will be beaten on Thursday night into Friday.
Temperatures in London are expected to reach 38C (100.4F) on Thursday, which would pass the current record for a day in July - 36.7C (98.1F) - recorded at Heathrow Airport in 2015.
The Met Office said there is a 40% chance the UK temperature record of 38.5C (101.3F), which was recorded in Faversham, Kent, in August 2003, will be exceeded.
Northern Ireland and western Scotland will be the coolest areas on Thursday, with temperatures in the low 20s.
