Essex could be hit with heavy downpours in the next few days as the Met Office has issued a yellow warning to the region.

Very warm and very humid air is expected to arrive across many eastern and southern parts of the UK during tonight. This increasing warmth and moisture increases the likelihood of some high rainfall falling over a short space of time.

Met Office adviser John Hammond warned: "The main risk of impacts from thunderstorms may well occur in two waves.

"The first wave during Thursday morning and early afternoon – as a scattering of potentially severe thunderstorms move northwards.

"There is a further risk of thunderstorms developing later in the afternoon and then into the evening on Thursday, with these move eastwards."

To highlight the risk of impacts from any thunderstorms and torrential downpours, a Met Office Yellow Warning of Rain has been updated.

This warning is now valid from 6am Thursday 8pm on Friday.

The warning now brings a low likelihood of medium impacts – and means there could be localised surface water flooding, especially if downpours fall over urban areas, with difficult driving conditions and disruption to transport also possible. Lightning and large hail are additional hazards which could lead to isolated power outages. 

It stays warm on Friday, as the main threat of any impacts from thunderstorms and torrential downpours moves away during the early hours of Friday.

Looking ahead to the weekend, temperatures are expected to gradually ease downwards but there will still be some warm sunshine – along with a scattering of showers on Saturday and Sunday.

Keep up to date with the latest Met Office forecast and Warning details – as well as monitoring any local thunderstorm developments and their movement, via the rainfall radar images on Hazard Manager, the Met Office website or through the Met Office App.