SPECTACULAR thunderstorms with torrential rain, lightening and even hail are set to hit Worcestershire this weekend.

The Met Office has issued a warning of potential 'heatwave' conditions in the West Midlands as hot air from the continent moves up to the UK over the coming days.

People are also being warned of potential widespread heavy thunderstorms tomorrow (Saturday) from what is known as a 'Spanish plume' which could cause flash flooding in some areas as rain hits the dry, baked earth.

Ian Michaelwaite, of netweather.tv in Pershore, said there could even be storms in the early hours of today (Friday) following a muggy night.

"The further west of the district you are the more likely you are catch a storm," he said. "But today the sun will get its hat on once the storms clear. Temperatures will get up to 24C or 25C or even 26C in local hotspots.

"In the humidity it will feel five or six degrees warmer as the Spanish Plume pushes itself towards us. It won't be a comfortable heat for a working day. It will be a very warm sticky evening, it won't drop below 20C before midnight."

Mr Michaelwaite said the thunderstorms could hit the county from the early hours of tomorrow morning (Saturday) but it was difficult to pin point exactly when.

"There should be some spectacular lightening, thunder and torrential rain and hailstones," he said. "It's going to be tricky driving conditions. Any fast-filling culverts or drains will fill up quite quickly."

The weatherman said the downpours would continue throughout the day with an inch of rain falling in some places while temperatures would feel muggy in the mid-20s.

But he added Sunday would be much fresher, drier with sunny spells and temperatures of 20C to 22C.

Meanwhile, West Midlands Ambulance Service is warning people to enjoy the heatwave safely with high temperatures and long periods of sunshine expected across the region today (Friday).

The ambulance service is bracing itself for another challenging weekend with heat wave alerts issued for today and the potential for heavy rain and thunder storms tomorrow (Saturday).

Dr Andrew Carson, WMAS medical director, said: “A heat wave poses a real danger to those patients with emphysema, asthma and long term breathing problems.

“The hot weather makes breathing difficult even for healthy individuals. That’s why we suggest people with respiratory illnesses should remain indoors as much as possible.

“It is vital that we get to these patients as quickly as possible and would therefore ask the public to assist us by only calling 999 in life threatening situations.”