Yellow weather warnings amid fears thunderstorms could bring up to 50mm of rain in just a few hours

The warm, humid air across the UK sparked off some heavy, thundery downpours in places on Thursday and there are more to come through this evening.

A yellow weather warning has been issued across Scotland and the North East of England.

The thunderstorms will be hit and miss but if you do catch one they could give 20mm-30mm of rainfall in the space of an hour - and up to 50mm in just a few hours.

The average rainfall total across the UK in July is around 80mm.

The UK tends to see more dramatic thunderstorms in the summer months.

This can often be because warm air can hold more moisture, so when conditions are suitable for showers, they are likely to be heavier and give higher rainfall totals.

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If winds are light as well, the showers can be slow-moving, meaning that some areas can see very high rainfall totals, in relatively short periods of time leading to the risk of flooding, power outages and travel disruptions.

In situations where heavy and slow-moving thunderstorms develop, some areas can record over a month's worth of rainfall in just a few hours.

The Met Office has issued a yellow warning to be aware of the potential impact of the thunderstorms - particularly for Scotland and the North East region of England.

The yellow warns there is a small chance that homes and businesses could be flooded quickly, with damage to some buildings from floodwater and lightning strikes.