A record-breaking long-range weather forecast heatwave closed hundreds of schools and services across the West of England this week, with disruption spreading beyond classrooms into roads and public services. The warm spell also brought thunderstorms on Monday night, when one lightning strike set the roof of a house on fire.
The heatwave coincided with two storms, and lightning strikes damaged roads as well as the house roof. Despite that, fans kept heading to the Harbourside almost every evening this week for Annual Bristol Sounds concerts.
Monday night in West of England
Warm temperatures gave way to thunderstorms on Monday night, and one lightning strike caused the roof of a house to catch fire. Lightning strikes also damaged roads, adding another layer to the week’s disruption in the West of England.
The sequence matters for people moving across the area: heat, then storms, then damage. That left schools and services dealing with closures while weather conditions remained unsettled across Bristol and the wider West.
Annual Bristol Sounds at Harbourside
The same week still drew crowds to Bristol Sounds at the Harbourside. Fans were heading there almost every evening, even as the heatwave and storm damage affected other parts of daily life.
The contrast was visible in the same stretch of days: closures for hundreds of schools and services, and packed evenings at Bristol Sounds. weather watchers also captured images across the West this week, including at Glastonbury Tor.
West of England this week
The immediate question for readers is how long the hot weather and related disruption will continue in the West of England. The available facts do not set an end point, so anyone planning travel, work, or school arrangements has to rely on the next weather update rather than a fixed timetable.
