Heavy downpours are set to move in after days of stifling heat, raising fears of serious ‘thunderstorm asthma’ attacks.

The Met Office said parts of the UK could face transport chaos – while some communities could be cut off altogether – by flooding as humid air causes storms to develop.

It issued a yellow thunderstorm warning across most of England and Wales, cautioning that some areas could be battered by up to 30mm of rainfall in the space of an hour on Sunday.

But the mercury is not expected to remain in the high 20s.

It comes after NHS chiefs warned the hot weather had contributed to ‘one of the busiest days on record’ in Accident and Emergency departments on Thursday.

Charity Asthma + Lung UK added that the humidity had caused an ‘unseasonal spike’ in asthma-related A&E visits and warned that thunderstorms over the weekend could cause ‘life-threatening’ asthma attacks.

What is ‘thunderstorm asthma’?

The UK Health Security Agency defines ‘thunderstorm asthma’ as ‘an increase in people reporting asthma symptoms linked to thunderstorm activity’.

In addition to gusts whipping up pollen into the air, it is thought that pollen and/or spores are pulled up into storm systems, broken apart into smaller particles by the moisture and then brought back down in rainfall where they can be inhaled deep into the lungs, causing breathing problems.

Who is affected by ‘thunderstorm asthma’?

While everybody may be at risk from thunderstorm asthma, previous events indicate young adults (below 30) can be particularly affected.

There is some evidence certain people are at greater risk, including those who have:

• previously been diagnosed with asthma – particularly those whose asthma is poorly controlled or who do not regularly take preventer medication
• asthma, but this has not been formally diagnosed at the time of the thunderstorm asthma episode
• seasonal allergic rhinitis (hay-fever)

Previous incidents of ‘thunderstorm asthma’

The largest recorded ‘thunderstorm asthma’ event was recorded in Melbourne, Australia, in November 2016.

A thunderstorm warning was issued on the first hot day of the year, when temperatures soared into the mid-to-high 30s.

Soon after it moved in, hospitals began seeing a surge in patients complaining of shortness of breath, with respiratory or asthma-related symptoms.

There was a 73% increase in the number of ambulance call outs and asthma-related hospital admissions rose by a staggering 992%, with 30 people requiring intensive care.

Following a coroner’s inquest, 10 deaths were associated with the event.

In England, the first recorded episode occurred in Birmingham in July 1983, and there have been a number of recorded events across the country since.

Most recently, a potential episode of thunderstorm asthma was detected by UKHSA’s real-time syndromic surveillance systems in June 2021.

Meanwhile, hosepipe bans have been introduced in Kent and Sussex due to ‘record levels’ of demand for drinking water.

Met Office spokesperson Grahame Madge said: ‘There are risks of flash flooding associated with these forecast thunderstorms.

‘Thunderstorms can unleash very intense rainfall and even hail.

‘The impacts from this sudden release of precipitation can create local difficulties especially in urban areas as intense rainfall can lead flood waters to rise on roads, underpasses.

‘This far out it isn’t possible to forecast exactly where these systems will form but we are confident that some will experience intense conditions.

‘We advise the public to follow the forecast and warnings so they can be prepared should thunderstorms develop at short notice.’

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