Does the UK get severe thunderstorms?

Less often and usually weaker than in continental Europe, but they do happen — mostly in southeast England, when warm air pushes up from the continent. Severe storms with hail and localised flooding mainly occur in summer.

Are there tornadoes in the UK?

Yes — the UK has one of the highest tornado frequencies per square kilometre in Europe, though they're almost entirely weak, short-lived funnels accompanying storm fronts, not supercells like in the US.

Which part of the UK has the most storms?

Southeast England — London, Kent, East Anglia — because of its proximity to mainland Europe and susceptibility to inflows of warm, moist air. Scotland and the north tend to have calmer storm weather.

What does a red Met Office warning mean?

The highest level — means danger to life or very significant disruption and requires specific action (e.g. avoiding travel). Orange means being prepared, yellow means being aware.

Is the London Underground safe during a thunderstorm?

Yes, being underground is safe in terms of lightning-strike risk. It's still worth checking Transport for London updates — heavy rain sometimes causes disruption on individual lines due to flooding.

What emergency number applies in the UK?

999 is the traditional British emergency number, but 112 also works throughout the country and is treated identically to 999 — both connect you to the same dispatch centre.

Storms 2026-08-08

Storm Alert: UK — when and where a thunderstorm is coming

The UK doesn't get storms as violent as continental Europe or Bavaria, but that doesn't mean it's free of them — and the island climate makes them harder to predict more than a few hours ahead. Check the current storm situation and where to find the official Met Office warning.

Check the storm for your town →

Recently added — storms

Storm Alert: UK — when and where a thunderstorm is coming

Current storm situation in the UK

The map below shows near-real-time precipitation and lightning radar. Storms in the UK often develop faster and less predictably than on the continent — it's worth checking the radar more than once a day during unsettled weather.

Windy.com · radar

Storm radar — UK

By default you see the precipitation radar together with real-time lightning strikes — one combined Windy layer. Switch to wind or to the warnings layer to see whether an official warning is in effect for this region.

To check what time a storm cell is due to reach a specific town, use this site's storm tool — it works for any town in Europe, including British ones.

Why UK storms are hard to predict

Britain's climate is heavily shaped by the surrounding sea — the same Atlantic air that gives the islands mild, rainy summers also limits the kind of "dry" convection that drives continental storms. The most intense UK storms usually form in summer, when warm, moist air pushes up from mainland Europe (a so-called "plume" — a tongue of hot air from France or the Low Countries) and collides with cooler Atlantic air masses over the islands.

Biggest fire hotspots

Top 5 — Europe Top 5 — USA

Southeast England — London, Kent, East Anglia — is the most prone to violent storms, precisely because of its proximity to the continent and susceptibility to inflows of warm air. Scotland and northern England tend to have a calmer, more Atlantic weather pattern, with fewer thunderstorm days per year.

Tornadoes do occur in the UK — rarely strong, but the country has one of the highest tornado frequencies per square kilometre in Europe, almost entirely weak, short-lived funnels accompanying storm fronts.

Other destinations

What a thunderstorm is and how to read the signal strength

The basics

What a thunderstorm is and how to read its strength

A thunderstorm forms when warm, moist air near the ground rises quickly and meets much colder air higher up. That motion (convection) builds a storm cloud (cumulonimbus) — sometimes over ten kilometres tall. Inside it, water droplets and ice crystals collide and build up an electrical charge, which eventually discharges as lightning.

A storm needs three things at once: moisture in the lower atmosphere, instability (a large temperature difference between the ground and higher up), and some trigger for the air to start rising — a weather front, ground heated hard on a hot day, or mountains forcing air upward.

How to read the storm-signal strength

Weather models (like ICON-D2, used on this site) do not "see" lightning directly — they calculate a Lightning Potential Index (LPI) from the physics of the cloud: how much ice and supercooled water is rising, how strong the updraft is. Rainfall and convective energy (CAPE) are added on top — together they give one index from 0–100%.

0–20% — calm, no real storm signal.
20–30% — weak signal, a passing shower is possible, a storm is unlikely.
30–45% — a real chance of a storm, worth tracking as it develops.
45%+ — a strong signal, a storm with a high chance of lightning.

This is a model forecast, not a radar reading — it shows what the model expects a few hours ahead, not what is happening right now. For the current situation, always check radar too (e.g. in this site's storm tool) and official warnings.

Windy.com · ECMWF model

Wind and weather — Europe

Wind direction and speed decide which way a fire runs. Switch the layer to temperature or humidity to judge the risk.

Strong wind, temperatures above 35 °C and humidity below 30% together are the conditions in which fire spreads fastest.

Met Office warnings

Warnings

Weather warnings — UK

This site shows a model forecast and does not replace official warnings. If Met Office has issued a warning for your region, that is what counts — not our forecast.

Check warnings: Met Office ↗ · MeteoAlarm — warnings for all of Europe ↗

The Met Office uses three warning colours: yellow (be aware), orange (be prepared) and red (take action — danger to life or significant disruption). For storms, "thunderstorm warnings" are usually issued shortly before the event, sometimes only a few hours ahead — British convection develops quickly and locally.

What to do once a storm is close

UK storms tend to be short, but intense rainfall in a short time regularly causes local flooding — especially in cities with old drainage systems, like London. If you're on foot in a city during a storm downpour:

Avoid flooded underpasses and low ground — water levels can rise very quickly.
Shelter in a solid building, not under a bus stop canopy.
If you're on the London Underground during a storm — that's one of the safer places, but check TfL updates for possible disruption.

We've covered a full, general storm safety guide in a separate article.

All storm pages