The Met Office issued weather warnings and school closures followed in the West Country as a red weather warning for extreme heat covered Wednesday and Thursday. Some schools closed early to protect children from the heat, while storms were already hitting the same area.
Monday brought 800 lightning strikes in the West, and an amber warning was in place for Monday and Tuesday before the red alert began. The UK's health agency also issued a red heat alert across the West as most of England and Wales was expected to hit more than 30C this week.
West Country disruption
Storms and heavy rain added another layer of disruption. Waste crews started collections early in some places to beat the heat, and heavy rainfall caused levels on the River Sheppey in Somerset to rise rapidly.
The Environment Agency warned that Shepton Mallet, Croscombe, Upper Coxley, Coxley and Fenny Castle would be the most affected by rising river levels. Flash flooding was reported in Watchet, Cheddar, Shepton Mallet and Bath.
Power cuts in Shepton Mallet
Hundreds of homes were without electricity as storms battered the West Country. National Grid said 252 properties in Shepton Mallet and 165 homes in Glastonbury were without power, while blackouts were also reported on the outskirts of Bristol in the BS48 area near Long Ashton, with 110 properties affected.
For readers in the area, the practical signal is simple: the heat warning runs across Wednesday and Thursday, and the disruption is already spreading across schools, roads, rivers and power supplies at the same time.
