A yellow weather warning for heavy rain and thunderstorms has been issued by the Met Office that is set to impact Colchester and much of Essex.

The weather warning is set to last from 12pm on Thursday, May 2 until around midnight on the same day.

As a whole, the weather warning is impacting large swathes of the middle of England and Wales.

In a statement, the Met Office said: "Thunderstorms developing this afternoon and evening may lead to travel disruption and some flooding."

Colchester hour-by-hour forecast for thunderstorms warning

The full Colchester Met Office page can be found on the website here.

  • 12pm - 18C, sunny intervals (below 5% chance of rain)
  • 1pm - 20C, sunny, (below 5% chance of rain)
  • 2pm - 20C, sunny intervals (below 5% chance of rain)
  • 3pm - 21C, thundershower (50% chance of rain)
  • 4pm - 19C, thunder (50% chance of rain)
  • 5pm - 18C, overcast (10% chance of rain)
  • 6pm - 18C, overcast (10% chance of rain)
  • 7pm - 17C, cloudy (10% chance of rain)
  • 8pm - 16C, overcast (10% chance of rain)
  • 9pm - 15C, overcast (10% chance of rain)
  • 10pm - 15C, overcast (10% chance of rain)
  • 11pm - 14C, overcast (10% chance of rain)

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What to expect with a yellow weather warning

In terms of what to expect with the current yellow warning, the Met Office says there could be:

  • Spray and sudden flooding could lead to difficult driving conditions and some road closures
  • There is a small chance that some communities become cut off by flooded roads
  • Where flooding or lightning strikes occur, there is a chance of delays and some cancellations to train and bus services
  • There is a slight chance that power cuts could occur and other services to some homes and businesses could be lost
  • There is a small chance that homes and businesses could be flooded quickly, with damage to some buildings from floodwater, lightning strikes, hail or strong winds

In a statement, the forecaster added: "While some areas will remain dry, thunderstorms are likely to develop this afternoon and evening from the east and move relatively slowly westwards or northwestward.

"Where thunderstorms occur, heavy rain accompanied by frequent lightning is likely with potential for 25 to 30 mm of rain to fall in 1 or 2 hours in a few places and perhaps as much as 50 mm could fall in one or two spots. In a few places there may also be some hail."