A tornado could hit parts of the UK, forecasters have warned as rain battered the south following the driest start to spring in nearly six decades.
The Environment Agency previously warned of the risk of drought this summer without sustained rainfall, with millions of households told they may face restrictions on water use in the coming months.
As of Friday, 80.6mm of rain had been recorded for the UK this spring, nearly 20mm less than the record low for the full season of 100.7mm set in 1852.
With heavy showers in the south today there's a risk of thunder and lightning, and possibly some short-lived funnel clouds or even a brief tornado. 🌩⚡
— Met Office (@metoffice) May 21, 2025
Just how rare are tornadoes in the UK?https://t.co/a6M4hr4l0V
On Wednesday, Met Office meteorologist Alex Burkill said: “Bit of a north-south split in our weather through today – northern parts having a lot of fine, sunny weather, meanwhile in the south we’ve seen some wet weather push its way in… and there will be further showery bursts to come as we go through the rest of today.”
He said there is a risk of thunder, lightning and hail in the UK’s southern regions.
“It’s not out of the question that we could see a funnel cloud, maybe even a brief tornado across parts of the South East,” he added.
The meteorologist warned of a cold front bringing cloud and rain across eastern Scotland and then down the eastern side of England overnight, with frost possible across some parts of Scotland.
Thursday is set to be a drier day, with a few showers possible across parts of the South West.
“But these won’t be as intense as the showery bursts that we’ll have seen through today,” Mr Burkill said.
“There will again be a good amount of sunshine on offer.”
Friday is also expected to be “mostly fine” but the weekend may bring some wet and windy weather.
“A real change from what we’ve become used to so far this spring,” Mr Burkill said.
