A yellow weather warning has been put in place for parts of the UK today, with forecasters warning heavy rain and thunder could be on the way. But will our region be affected by the storms?

The last time our region saw significant rainfall was over 40 days ago, bringing misery to farmers across Suffolk and north Essex who are desperate for some wet weather.

Now forecasters are predicting thundery downpours in parts – with our region likely to be hit early next week.

While parts of Wales and the west of England will likely see torrential rain this evening, wreaking havoc during the rush hour, the roads in Suffolk and north Essex should stay dry – and things will continue to stay warm as we head into the weekend, with highs of 29 or 30C.

However the heavy showers are likely to hit Suffolk and north Essex in the early part of next week, as thunderstorms move north from Kent.

Weatherquest forecaster Adam Dury said the storms could start anytime from Monday evening onwards, perhaps peaking on Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon.

While the temperatures will stay hot at the beginning of the week, with highs of 27 or 28C on Monday, things begin to get cooler as the days go by. The region will likely see temperatures closer to average for this time of year as we move through Wednesday and Thursday, with highs of 21 or 22C.

The scorching hot weather has contributed to a number of large scale open-air fires in the region, prompting calls from Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service for people to be extra careful. Chief fire officer Mark Hardingham said: “With the extreme hot and dry weather to continue throughout the Wimbledon fortnight, the Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service encourages everyone to be extra vigilant. Be aware of fire risks when you are out in the open, especially near to standing crop, crop stubble or trees and undergrowth, all of which is currently tinder dry.”