A house in Hampshire has been partially destroyed after it was hit by lightning, the fire service has said.

The roof of the two-storey property in Andover was blown in after it was struck in a thunderstorm, Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service (HIOWFRS) said.

Smoke was pictured coming from the semi-detached home in Mercia Avenue, with firefighters urging people to avoid the area.

A 70-year-old woman was checked over by paramedics at the scene but was not taken to hospital, the fire service added.

Yellow thunderstorm warnings are in place for the entire south coast and parts of Wales until midnight on Sunday.

⚠️ Over the past few hours #thunderstorms ⛈️ have approached the south coast ⚠️

These are expected to continue northwards through #Saturday.

Stay #WeatherAware ⚠️⛈️⚠️ pic.twitter.com/5KlbOcHeTy

It comes after a week of extreme heat across the UK, with temperatures exceeding 30C (86F).

Forecasters say the heatwave will be replaced by heavy rain, hail and gusts of wind over the weekend.

The Met Office has issued two thunderstorm warnings for Saturday and Sunday respectively.

Heavy rain is expected across southern parts of England and Wales on Saturday, with 50mm (2in) due to fall in just one hour, and up to 100mm (4in) falling in some spots on Sunday.

Those hoping to make the most of the first weekend of the school holidays could be left disappointed, with around six million leisure journeys expected to take place this weekend, according to the RAC.

Heavy downpours run the risk of flooding, road closures and hazardous driving conditions, while strong winds – of up to 55mph in coastal areas – are likely to cause problems for people staying in tents or caravans.

Ferry services may also be affected, the Met Office added.

Sunday’s storm warning moves eastwards into East Anglia and risks causing disruption to Latitude Festival in Suffolk.

Around 40,000 people are due to attend the event at the Henham Park estate as part of the government’s large events pilot programme.

The north of England is likely to have more settled weather, with less rain and more sunshine, although temperatures will be cooler than they were this week.

Related posts:

Parents pay tribute to ‘little angel’ killed in early morning Lancashire blast Ex-girlfriend of Babes in the Wood killer found guilty of perjury Two children killed in crash on M1 near Milton Keynes Mental health hospital was closed after CCTV exposed staff being abusive towards patients Corbyn joins Assange supporters as US appeal against decision not to extradite WikiLeaks founder UK reports more than 100 coronavirus deaths for second day in a row Raducanu’s win could be most unexpected British sporting story ever UK set to have one million Omicron infections by end of December – but booster jabs effective, says UKHSA Prince Andrew accused of ‘victim blaming’ over demand for accuser’s mental health records Ruth Davidson says mental health history meant she almost did not run as Scottish Tory leader Body of British woman swept away by Tonga tsunami found Govt to undertake review of BBC’s funding model as licence fee frozen for two years