Parts of England swelter in ANOTHER day of scorching 33C temperatures - before heavy rain moves in

The Met Office has issued a thunderstorm warning as parts of England swelter in another day of scorching 33C temperatures - before heavy rain moves in.

Droughts have been declared in eight areas and an amber warning for 'extreme heat' remains in place for large parts of the south, east, west, midlands and north of England until midnight as the latest summer heatwave is set to go out with a bang.

It comes as several wildfires have already erupted across England in recent days amid the driest summer in half a century.

Met Officer meteorologist Dan Stroud said the weather will remain dry across the south today. 

He added: 'For the rest of the weekend, across the south, there will be a continuation of the very dry and hot conditions.'

But thunderstorms are expected in northern parts of the country, with the forecaster having issued a yellow weather warning from noon today through to 6am tomorrow for most of Scotland and Northern Ireland.

The forecaster has warned of flash flooding and power cuts as showers beat down across the two regions. 

A similar warning is in place for Wales and England from 10am until midnight.

The Met Office said Charlwood in Surrey, south west England, recorded the highest temperature at 34.9C. 

Mr Stroud continued: 'As we move into Sunday, a slight change with low pressure starting to arrive from the south.

'There is an increasing risk of some isolated showers across Devon and Cornwall, very early on Sunday.

'Most places still generally dry and fine, with some strong August sunshine, with those temperatures rising rapidly during the course of Sunday morning and into the afternoon.'

It comes after a body was found in a Doncaster lake on Saturday after emergency services rushed to reports that a man in his 20s had got into difficulty in water.

Emergency services were called to Lakeside lake at around 4.10pm yesterday, according to South Yorkshire Police.

Little over two hours later, a teenage boy went missing in the sea at Skegness.

Emergency services rushed to reports that 'a child under 16' was in the water at around 6.15pm on Saturday.

A search was carried out by police officers and the coastguard, before the boy's body was tragically recovered at around 11.30pm last night.

Elsewhere, searing temperatures this week have already central reservation barriers along a stretch of the A63 in Yorkshire to buckle.

Pictures taken on Thursday from the Water Lane Bridge, in South Cave, show stretches of the ordinarily straight barriers with large kinks and bends.

Meanwhile, an amber heat warning remains in place until midnight across parts of England and Wales.

The barriers were installed on the dual carriageway earlier during the winter between junction 38 of the M62 and South Cave.

A spokesperson for National highways told the BBC that the buckling may have been caused by ground conditions, but added that the heatwave was 'not being ruled out'. 

The weather warning means heat-related illnesses including sunburn and heat exhaustion are 'likely' among the general population, while delays to public transport are also 'possible'.

Mr Stroud has said there remains a risk of further wildfires, too.

He added: 'It has been extremely dry for an extended period and the ground and vegetation has been baked dry, so there is a significant risk.'

An official drought was declared in eight areas of England on Friday by the National Drought Group (NDG), which comprises representatives from the Government, water companies, the Environment Agency (EA) and others.

And the drought could persist into next year, the EA has said.

Jersey Water has become the latest company to urge residents not to use hosepipes and sprinklers after the island, some 85 miles south of the English coast, reached its second 'absolute drought' of 2022 after more than 15 days without rain on August 5.

According to the firm, the demand for water during the week reached around 22 million litres of water per day, around 2.5 million more compared to the same period last year.

John Curtin, executive director for local operations at the EA, also said it will take 'weeks' worth of rain' to replenish water sources. 

Three water companies - Welsh Water, Southern Water, and South East Water - have all imposed hosepipe bans, while Yorkshire Water has announced a ban will start on August 26 and Thames Water is planning one in the coming weeks. 

On Saturday, residents in Surrey and West Sussex were without water after issues hit the Netley Mill Water Treatment Works.

Water supplier Thames Water apologised and handed out bottled water to residents in Guildford, Surrey Hills, Dorking and Horsham while engineers worked to restore the supply.

By this morning the problem had been fixed, with residents being told water was 'gradually returning to the area'.

A statement from Thames Water said: 'Problems at Netley Mill Water Treatment Works have been fixed and supply is gradually returning to the area. We're identifying and unblocking air pockets in the system to allow taps to flow normally.

'As supplies return, you may notice spluttering, cloudiness or low pressure - but this will improve.'

But Surrey county councillor Liz Townsend slammed the water firm for the supply issues during one of the hottest weekends of the year.

She told BBC Breakfast: 'This is happening more and more now with warm weather. We had this problem last year as well here.

'And to be honest, the service is not fit for purpose now and residents are rightly getting very, very annoyed about what they're having to put up with.'

She added that Thames Water 'failed this time to meet the needs of the vulnerable as well in and around Cranleigh and Ewhurst" after she received messages from elderly people saying they had not been delivered any water.'

A statement from Thames Water said: 'Netley Mill Water Treatment Works is now back in service and supply is gradually being restored to the local network. This will continue over the remainder of the day.

'We are very sorry that customers have been impacted especially at a time of high temperatures.

'When supplies do begin to return, we are asking customers to try to use this just for essential use initially. This will help us return supplies to everyone quicker.

'We are supplying bottled water to customers who we know need additional help. If anyone is unable to travel to a bottled water site they should contact us on 0800 316 9800 and we will provide assistance.'

Forecasts of rain will be well-received by many amid the drought and scorched surfaces across the UK.

But the incoming thunderstorms may not help alleviate drought conditions as the parched ground doesn't easily absorb water, instead it tends to run off the surface.

This means the rainfall is transported quickly into streams and rivers and increases the chance of a flash flood.

On Friday night, fire crews in Derbyshire tackled a huge blaze with four fire engines attending the scene in Creswell, Worksop.

Footage shared online showed flames filling the horizon and large plumes of smoke in the sky above a residential area.

Dartford Heath in Kent was also alight as a result of scorching heat on Saturday, with temperatures reaching highs of 34C (93.2F) in the local area.

And in Dorset, a team of firefighters worked through the night to bring a wildfire at Studland under control, which was believed to have been sparked by a disposable barbecue.

Dorset Police said yesterday that firefighters had discovered an unexploded piece of ammunition believed to date to the Second World War on the scorched heathland.

The force said a bomb disposal unit would be attending and warned the public in the surrounding area they may hear a loud bang as they dispose of the device.

It comes as Dorset Police appealed for anyone with any information about the cause of a large heath fire in Poole on August 4 to come forward.

Witnesses saw three young boys on bicycles making off from the scene at Upton Heath at about 2.30pm.

The fire had a "significant" impact on the community, and took firefighters several hours to put out.

It comes after beach-goers flocked to Brighton and Bournemouth yesterday as temperatures reached 35C. 

Meanwhile, pre-season rugby games were forced to be cancelled because the surfaces are unplayable after weeks without rain.

The pitches have burned out and crusted over, making them rock hard and bringing an element of risk as it increases the chances of players suffering injuries.

The Football Supporters' Association also urged clubs change their rules to helps of fans during the scorching afternoon in the stands.