Flood warnings have been enforced across the country for the weekend after parts of southeast England saw a month’s worth of rainfall in one day.
The Environment Agency has issued 39 flood alerts in London, Kent, parts of the Home Counties, the West Midlands and Wiltshire after some areas saw up to 67mm of rain.
Dancers End in Hertfordshire, Drayton Parslow in Buckinghamshire, Toddington in Bedfordshire and southern Farnborough in Hampshire, had rainfall of between 65mm and 57mm, while Otterbourne also in Hampshire, topped the charts with 67mm from 11pm Thursday to 5pm Friday.
The Met Office said temperatures have dropped across the UK following sweltering weather earlier this week, and torrential downpours that could cause flooding are expected in some southern areas.
A yellow weather warning for rain covering much of England, apart from Devon, Cornwall and the North West, has also been issued.
Met Office spokesman Grahame Madge said: “In the South East, there will be rain every day for the next few days, and some places could see up to 80mm (3.2in) on Friday.
“The heaviest rain will be in places from Hampshire up to Yorkshire, where we are quite likely to see intense rainfall which will clear away tonight.”
He added that Saturday has the “potential to be drier” in the south but the deluge is set to return on Sunday and last into next week.
Temperatures are predicted to range between 19C (66.5F) in London, 18C (64.4F) in Belfast and 17C (62.6F) in Edinburgh on Saturday.
Drivers have been urged not to plough through flood water, with the Environment Agency warning that just 1ft (30cm) of flowing water is enough to float a vehicle.
The DVLA advises drivers to double the usual separation distance between their vehicle and the one in front, keeping speed down and using dipped headlights.