UK weather: Lightning strikes homes in Hampshire as the country is hit by storms | UK Weather

A 70-year-old woman was unharmed after two houses in Hampshire were partially destroyed by lightning. It is expected that there will be thunderstorms and heavy rain in southern England this weekend.

After a few days of clear skies and scorching hot weather, the Bureau of Meteorology issued a Yellow weather warning On Saturdays and Sundays in southern England and Wales, frequent lightning, thunderstorms and strong winds are expected.

As estimated It is estimated that there will be 11.5 million leisure trips by car From last Wednesday to Sunday, as the school holiday began, forecasters warned motorists that there may be difficult driving conditions and road closures this weekend, and floods may occur in certain areas.

On Saturday morning, after lightning strikes severely damaged two houses, firefighters rushed to a street in Andover, Hampshire. A 70-year-old woman escaped safely, but the roofs of both properties were destroyed by explosions caused by the strike. A spokesperson for the Hampshire Fire and Rescue Department said that after the strike, firefighters were extinguishing the fire.

The 79-year-old neighbor, Barry Austin, said: “There was a huge explosion-apparently lightning, and I think it woke everyone else on the street.

“I saw the flicker. When I looked out, I saw that the roof of the semi-detached house was completely on fire. It had completely disappeared. The side supporting the roof also collapsed, and the flames spread to the next door.”

Those attending the festival may spend a muddy weekend at Latitude in Suffolk. This is the first full festival since the pandemic began, and 40,000 people are expected to attend. From 9 am to midnight on Sunday, government testing activities will issue a thunderstorm yellow weather warning.

Frank Sanders, chief operating meteorologist for the Bureau of Meteorology, said: “The warning issued over the weekend showed that with the entry of low pressure, the weather patterns in many southern regions have changed significantly, which has potential impacts on businesses and the public. The stable weather brings the risk of heavy rain and flooding in some places. However, the more northern areas will maintain sunny weather during the weekend, although not as hot as they have been recently.”

Just as the summer school holidays in England and Wales began, heavy rain came, which hindered many plans for domestic holidays.With the recent YouGov poll It was found that only 8% of Britons had booked overseas holidays under complicated travel restrictions, and many would target travel within the UK.

Less than two weeks after heavy rains hit southern England and caused flooding in parts of London, the weather warning was issued.This London Fire Brigade says On July 12, its 999 controllers received more than 150 calls about floods in the capital, causing serious damage and causing serious damage to some families and businesses. Scientists have long warned that the climate crisis is triggering extreme weather events, from devastating heat waves in Canada to deadly floods across Europe.

Forecasters said that the unstable weather seems to continue until early next week, and it is expected that most parts of the UK will continue to rain.