Will the UK be hit by a tornado this bank holiday weekend?
The weather has taken a bit of a turn for the worse this week with heavy and thundery showers recorded yesterday.
The Met Office even warned that the south east of England could have been hit by a funnel cloud or tornado yesterday.
Met Office meteorologist Alex Burkill said it was 'not out of the question that we could see a funnel cloud, maybe even a brief tornado across parts of the South East'.
While there have been no reports of tornadoes or funnel clouds across the UK, the Met Office gave its verdict as to whether there will be any this bank holiday weekend.
A spokesperson for the Met Office, told Metro: 'There is a change coming in the UK weather this weekend, with more mobility from the west bringing fresher conditions, as well as rain and some windy weather.
'This means the chance of any funnel cloud or small scale tornadoes diminishes, so no risk over the bank holiday weekend.'
So the short answer is no.
But there have been tornadoes recorded in the UK previously.
According to the Met Office, around 30 tornadoes are recorded in the UK each year.
These tend to be small and short-lived, but they can cause structural damage if they pass over built-up areas.
Tornadoes can occur across the world,d but they are most common across North America.
'Tornado Valley' in the centre of the US is most prone to violent and large tornadoes.
These are caused when warm air from the Gulf of Mexico meets cold air from Canada which form powerful storms called supercells and when the conditions are right tornadoes are formed.
David Oliver from the Met Office explained that the high pressure will move away eastwards this weekend. More Trending
He said: 'These will bring rain and windier conditions from the west later Friday, which will spread across the whole of the UK on Saturday. Some heavy rain is expected, especially in the northwest later on Saturday when winds will also strengthen, bringing a risk of coastal gales in the north.
'These strong winds will continue on Sunday as an area of low pressure passes the northwest of the UK.
'Blustery showers are expected on Sunday, which will be heaviest and most frequent in the northwest.'
While it is expected to be windy, on the plus side, temperatures will be broadly average for the time of year, around 18°C to 20°C across the country.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
MORE: Map shows scale of flooding across southern France which left three people dead
MORE: 'Merit's The Uniform Tinted SPF 50 is the everyday skin staple you didn't know you needed'
MORE: 9 best BBQs and pizza ovens from Dunelm ideal for this bank holiday weekend
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South Wales Guardian
2 hours ago
- South Wales Guardian
Monday set to be one of the hottest June days ever with temperatures to hit 34C
Much of England will enter a fourth day of a heatwave, forecast to be hotter than holiday spots in Barbados, Jamaica and Mexico. Since 1960, UK temperatures in June have surpassed 34C in only three years, with the hottest being 35.6C, recorded on June 28 1976. Here is the 4cast for Monday 📅 Hot across southeast England in particular with temperatures reaching 34 Celsius 🌡️ — Met Office (@metoffice) June 29, 2025 Wimbledon is set for its hottest opening day ever on Monday, with temperatures expected to surpass the previous record of 29.3C set on June 25 2001. The hottest day the tournament has seen was on July 1 2015 when temperatures reached 35.7C. A tropical night may also be on the cards, with parts of England to stay above 20C overnight into Tuesday, the Met Office said. Parts of south-east England could then hit 35C on Tuesday. But, Scotland and Northern Ireland face heavy rain and cooler temperatures. Charlwood in Surrey recorded the hottest temperature of the year so far at 33.2C on June 21. Where is the heat building and how long will it last? The week ahead video below tells all and more 👇 — Met Office (@metoffice) June 29, 2025 A second amber heat health alert in two weeks came into force on Friday. The alert, which covers London, the East Midlands, the South East, the South West and the East of England, will last until 6pm on Tuesday. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) also issued a yellow alert for Yorkshire and Humber and the West Midlands for the same time period, warning of significant impacts on health and social care services. An amber alert was previously issued for all regions in England on June 19, the first time it had been used since September 2023. An official heatwave is recorded when areas reach a certain temperature for three consecutive days, with thresholds varying from 25C to 28C in different parts of the UK. London Fire Brigade assistant commissioner Thomas Goodall said: 'London is already facing its second heatwave of the year and we know that people will be looking forward to getting outside to enjoy the wonderful weather. 'But the high temperatures and low rainfall in recent months means the current risk of wildfires is severe. 'So far this year, firefighters have responded to around 14 wildfires in the capital. 'There have also been countless callouts to smaller fires involving grass, trees and in other outdoor spaces, as well as in people's gardens. 'During this latest heatwave, it is important everyone acts responsibly to prevent fires from occurring. 'As the weather has been so dry, it only takes a few sparks to lead to a fire spreading rapidly. 'In London, this is can be dangerous because so many of our green spaces lie close to homes and other properties.'
BBC News
2 hours ago
- BBC News
Heatwave peak set to bring 34C to parts of UK
Parts of the UK could see one of the hottest June days ever as a heatwave, now in its fourth day, peaks on of 34C are possible in central and eastern parts of England according to the Met Office. UK temperatures in June have only exceeded this level three times since Festival has advised people to leave before 06:00 BST to avoid the head while Wimbledon could see its hottest opening day amber alert, in place since Friday, persists for five regions meaning weather impacts are likely to be felt across the whole health service. There is also a "severe" risk of wildfires according to the London Fire Brigade. The East Midlands, South East, South West, London and the East of England all fall under the amber heat-health alert and are likely to be subject to travel Yorkshire and Humber and the West Midlands are under a less serious yellow high temperatures mean all of these areas are likely to experience a rise in deaths particularly among the vulnerable, according to the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA). However it won't be hot everywhere. "Cloud and some heavy rain will affect Northern Ireland and western parts of Scotland through Monday and temperatures will be suppressed to the mid to high teens," Met Office Chief Meteorologist Matthew Lenhert lows are only predicted to fall to 20C in some areas heading into is the second heatwave of the year. London Fire Brigade assistant Thomas Goodall explained that this is why the risk of wildfires is "severe" as well as due to low rainfall in recent from the UKHSA recommends keeping out of the sun in the hottest part of the day between 11:00 and 15:00, wearing hats, sunglasses and suncream.
Leader Live
3 hours ago
- Leader Live
Monday set to be one of the hottest June days ever with temperatures to hit 34C
Much of England will enter a fourth day of a heatwave, forecast to be hotter than holiday spots in Barbados, Jamaica and Mexico. Since 1960, UK temperatures in June have surpassed 34C in only three years, with the hottest being 35.6C, recorded on June 28 1976. Here is the 4cast for Monday 📅 Hot across southeast England in particular with temperatures reaching 34 Celsius 🌡️ — Met Office (@metoffice) June 29, 2025 Wimbledon is set for its hottest opening day ever on Monday, with temperatures expected to surpass the previous record of 29.3C set on June 25 2001. The hottest day the tournament has seen was on July 1 2015 when temperatures reached 35.7C. A tropical night may also be on the cards, with parts of England to stay above 20C overnight into Tuesday, the Met Office said. Parts of south-east England could then hit 35C on Tuesday. But, Scotland and Northern Ireland face heavy rain and cooler temperatures. Charlwood in Surrey recorded the hottest temperature of the year so far at 33.2C on June 21. Where is the heat building and how long will it last? The week ahead video below tells all and more 👇 — Met Office (@metoffice) June 29, 2025 A second amber heat health alert in two weeks came into force on Friday. The alert, which covers London, the East Midlands, the South East, the South West and the East of England, will last until 6pm on Tuesday. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) also issued a yellow alert for Yorkshire and Humber and the West Midlands for the same time period, warning of significant impacts on health and social care services. An amber alert was previously issued for all regions in England on June 19, the first time it had been used since September 2023. An official heatwave is recorded when areas reach a certain temperature for three consecutive days, with thresholds varying from 25C to 28C in different parts of the UK. London Fire Brigade assistant commissioner Thomas Goodall said: 'London is already facing its second heatwave of the year and we know that people will be looking forward to getting outside to enjoy the wonderful weather. 'But the high temperatures and low rainfall in recent months means the current risk of wildfires is severe. 'So far this year, firefighters have responded to around 14 wildfires in the capital. 'There have also been countless callouts to smaller fires involving grass, trees and in other outdoor spaces, as well as in people's gardens. 'During this latest heatwave, it is important everyone acts responsibly to prevent fires from occurring. 'As the weather has been so dry, it only takes a few sparks to lead to a fire spreading rapidly. 'In London, this is can be dangerous because so many of our green spaces lie close to homes and other properties.'
