Electrical storm lights up skies above southern England » Environment » 24dash.com

An electrical storm lit up parts of southern England overnight in a dramatic display of nature at work.

Lightning flashed menacingly over south London as the summer storm passed from the south coast to Essex.

Meanwhile other areas of Britain and Ireland suffered flooding as the rain lashed down.

Julian Mayes, senior forecaster with MeteoGroup, the weather division of the Press Association, said the electrical storm was on a narrow strip from the south coast to Essex.

"Visually, it was one of the most impressive light displays we have seen for some time," he said.

"It began with thundery showers on the Sussex coast, which moved inland during the evening, skirting south London, and heading on to Essex."

The wettest weather was in Scotland, with 53mm of rain (just over two inches) at Edinburgh Airport in the 24 hours to 7am.

About an inch (26mm) fell in Perth in the 12 hours between 7am and 7pm yesterday.

A number of roads in Edinburgh were closed today because of the downpours.

Around 10 houses in Brunstane Mill Road were flooded after the Figgate Burn burst its banks.

Firefighters were using portable pumps to take water out of the houses.

There were also fears of flooding in Renfrewshire, with concerns that a dam could burst.

Heavy rain over the weekend affected the structure at a reservoir known as Maich Fishery near Lochwinnoch.

Around 20 households were today warned for a second time that they may have to be evacuated and some people moved out themselves after warnings from police.

Firefighters were pumping out the dam to reduce the water level.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) said there was one severe flood warning and six flood warnings in place across Scotland.

Train services between Edinburgh and Glasgow Queen Street and from North Berwick to the Scottish capital were also disrupted, with passengers warned to expect cancellations and delays.

Shannon Airport in south west Ireland received 48mm (nearly two inches) of rain in the 12 hours to 7pm yesterday - including 38mm in one hour during the late afternoon, Mr Mayes said.

In Northern Ireland, a road subsided during overnight flooding in Londonderry.

A section of the Rossdowney Road in the Waterside area gave way in a torrential downpour which left some areas of the city under 2ft of water.

Elsewhere in the city, two homes were flooded and at one point raw sewage was flowing down the Limavady Road.

A council clean-up operation was set to get under way later.

A Roads Service spokeswoman said the Rossdowney Road would remain closed while engineers completed temporary repairs.

Mr Mayes said more thunderstorms were possible today and there had already been some lightning in Lincolnshire.

"We can expect more unsettled weather at the weekend, but it will be cooler and more breezy," he said.