When thunderstorm will hit North East this week after heatwave weekend

Following a hot and sunny weekend in the North East – and with temperatures set to stay high for the next two days – forecasters have issued a weather warning for thunderstorms across most of England.

The warning is in place from 6pm on Wednesday, June 16, to 6am on Friday, June 18, as the Met Office says there is a potential for travel disruption and flooding.

Temperatures will stay high in the coming days with highs of 21C along the North East coast – although it may remain cloudy on Monday (June 14) and Wednesday (June 16) – the region looks set for another predominately sunny day on Tuesday (June 15).

But that looks set to change by Thursday with heavy rain forecast for much of the region and the temperature will drop to the mid teens heading into the weekend.

The weather warning is in place for the southern areas in the North East such as Durham, Hartlepool and Teesside.

With thunderstorms likely to hit the region, there is a small chance that homes and businesses could be flooded quickly or damage caused to some buildings by lightning strikes, strong winds, hail or floodwater.

This also means there is a chance of delays and some cancellations to train and bus services and driving conditions may be difficult. There is also a small chance that some smaller communities will become cut off due to flooded roads or that power cuts may occur.

A Met Office spokesman said: “Although there remains significant uncertainty in location and timing, areas of thunderstorms are expected to move northeast across parts of England and Wales from late Wednesday through to Friday morning.

"Whilst not all locations will be affected, some intense thunderstorms may occur during this period with torrential rain, hail, frequent lightning and strong gusty winds possible.

"Rainfall totals of around 30 mm could fall in an hour, with some locations potentially receiving around 50 mm in 2-3 hours, although these will be fairly isolated.”