Met Office issues 'how to shelter' storm alert for 38 areas across 22 hours

People living in 38 areas have been issued an important reminder over how to shelter if caught in a storm.

After several days of hot, dry conditions, the Met Office has put in place a yellow weather warning today forthunderstorms, with torrential downpours, hail, and surface flooding also included in the alert. This warning will cover all of Scotland and much of Northern Ireland, and will be in force until 10pm tonight. While many will be able to watch the storm unfold from the comfort of their own homes, lightning strikes can be a much more frightening and unsettling experience if you're out in the open - and the national forecaster is re-issuing its official advice over what you should do if you find yourself in this situation.

READ MORE: Incredible moment a train smashes into van on level crossing - but driver survives.

READ MORE: Mum who left work 'abruptly' was then found dead in a hotel room.

Areas covered by warning Central, Tayside & Fife

• Angus
• Clackmannanshire
• Dundee
• Falkirk
• Fife
• Perth and Kinross
• Stirling

Grampian

• Aberdeen
• Aberdeenshire
• Moray

Highlands & Eilean Siar

• Na h-Eileanan Siar
• Highland

Northern Ireland

• County Antrim
• County Armagh
• County Down
• County Fermanagh
• County Londonderry
• County Tyrone
• Orkney & Shetland
• Orkney Islands
• Shetland Islands

SW Scotland, Lothian Borders

• Dumfries and Galloway
• East Lothian
• Edinburgh
• Midlothian Council
• Scottish Borders
• West Lothian

Strathclyde

• Argyll and Bute
• East Ayrshire
• East Dunbartonshire
• East Renfrewshire
• Glasgow
• Inverclyde
• North Ayrshire
• North Lanarkshire
• Renfrewshire
• South Ayrshire
• South Lanarkshire
• West Dunbartonshire

What should I do if I'm caught in a thunderstorm?

Many people's first instinct if caught in a storm outdoors will be to be seek shelter under a tree, but this should be avoided as they offer you minimal protection if they are struck by lightning, the Met Office say.

Instead, you should try and get inside an enclosed space - such as a car - and move to a low-lying area if you're on higher ground.

The national forecaster explained in the warning: "If you find yourself outside and hear thunder, protect yourself by finding a safe enclosed shelter (such as a car). Do not shelter under or near trees, or other structures which may be struck by lightning.

"If you are on an elevated area move to lower ground."

Heavy showers in the north but warm conditions elsewhere

Heavy downpours are also likely in the weather warning areas over the next few hours, with the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency issuing 19 flood alerts across a large area of the country.

The Met Office said in their yellow weather warning: "Whilst not all areas will be affected, heavy showers and thunderstorms may develop in places during the early hours of Thursday and into Thursday morning, perhaps merging into some larger areas of rain.

"Where heavy downpours occur, 20-40 mm of rain could accumulate in less than an hour, bringing the risk of some surface water flooding. Hail and lightning will be additional hazards."

Elsewhere, conditions are expected to stay warm in England and Wales today, with highs of 28C forecast in London and 23C in Wales.

Temperatures are forecast to top 30C again in some southern areas on Friday and remain warm well into next week, with the fourth heatwave of the year set to continue amid what experts have declared a “nationally significant” water shortfall.

Five areas - Yorkshire, Cumbria and Lancashire, Greater Manchester Merseyside and Cheshire, East Midlands, and the West Midlands - are now officially in drought, despite a spell of unsettled, wetter weather towards the end of July.