A further national severe weather warning has been issued for Sunday for heavy thunderstorms as final parties are set to take place for the Queen's Platinum Jubilee weekend.

The yellow thunderstorm warning covers much of England and Wales and runs until 6pm this evening. Jubilee parties are due to take place in Penryn, Falmouth's Kimberley Park and Mylor Bridge Playing fields where a tree will be planted.

Areas of heavy rain and thunderstorms break out over parts of England and Wales during the early hours of Sunday, moving into the UK from the near-continent. The resulting areas of rain and thunderstorms are expected to be more extensive than those of Friday night and early Saturday and, thus, affect more places.

 

Met Office Chief Meteorologist, Dan Suri, said: “In contrast to last night and this morning, more places within the warning area on Sunday are likely to see heavy rain and thunderstorms. Where thunderstorms do occur impacts from heavy rain and frequent lightning strikes are possible.

“A few places could see 15 – 20 mm of rain within an hour, with a small chance of 50 mm in an hour, most likely over parts of the Midlands, southeast England and East Anglia whilst the risk of thunderstorms over the northern part of the warning is smaller. Then, during Sunday afternoon new showers, some heavy and thundery, are likely over the southern or so third of the UK. North of the warning area in Northern England and Scotland conditions will be much more settled. If you’re planning outside events for Sunday, please keep a regular eye on the forecast for your area for any updates.”

An existing warning for thunderstorms which was issued for southern England yesterday has now been trimmed to only cover parts of southwest of England and expires at 13:00 on Saturday afternoon.

As the heavy showers ease away elsewhere on Saturday bright or sunny spells will develop for some, but parts of the Midlands and some North Sea coastal areas will tend to remain cloudier. The best of the weather will be in the north of the UK where there will be more sunshine, temperatures could reach up to 24°C in the northwest of Scotland.

Through Sunday, away from the thunderstorms, it will be cloudier and cooler than the past few days for many with temperatures in the mid to high teens. Only Scotland will hold on to sunnier conditions where after chilly start temperatures could still reach 21°C in the northwest.

As we move into a new week, the weather remains unsettled with the continued chance of rain and showers moving in from the west, though there will be sunny spells at times with north-west Scotland continuing to see the best of the weather.

As the Jubilee weekend continues the roads remain busy, RAC traffic spokesman Rod Dennis said: “The fact the bank holidays coincide with the end of half-term in many places has the potential to put some extra pressure on the road network, so planning a journey carefully is important to beat the worst of any queues.

“The best way for drivers to avoid breaking down this week is to check over their vehicles before setting out – yet our research shows less than a fifth do this routinely. Making sure oil, coolant and screenwash are all at the right levels takes just minutes, as does ensuring tyres are free of damage and are inflated properly. A bit of TLC now could make the difference between a straightforward trip and one beset by a breakdown.”

Gabbi Batchelor, Water Safety Education Manager at the RNLI said: “We are expecting the Platinum Jubilee Bank Holiday Weekend and the half-term holidays to be incredibly busy at the coast. We want everyone to enjoy their trip, but we also want to make sure people stay safe and know what to do in an emergency.

“If you get into trouble in the water, Float to Live: lean back, using your arms and legs to stay afloat. Control your breathing, then call for help or swim to safety. In a coastal emergency, call 999 or 112 for the Coastguard.”