"I've never heard thunder like that before": What readers thought of "so loud" storms and what weather to expect for the rest of the week

Storms, which have been described as "biblical" by some weather commentators, struck the central Lancashire area at around 3am.

This is why we’ve just had Preston’s wettest July on record

While many people were lucky enough to sleep straight through, others were left worried and unable to get back to sleep.

Cazi Gleadill wrote: "It woke me up I thought there was an explosion. I've never heard thunder like that before."

Louise Newton said: "I slept through it but my daughter rang this morning and said it was almost terrifying, and she loves a good storm. My husband said it was like an explosion right outside in the street."

Tanya Marie Donnelly said: "Been up since 3 it's was so loud!"

Kiah Nicole said: "I had my windows open and I love thunder but it scared me to death I thought my house was going to blow up."

Nicola Collison said: “It didn’t wake me up as I’d only just gone to bed but I thought omg what the heck is that?! So loud.”

Is the weather going to get better?

In short, only slightly.

According to the MET Office, tonight, showers will gradually ease, with some clear spells. It will remain breezy and cooler than Tuesday night.

Tomorrow (Thursday), after a mostly dry and bright start, showers will quickly develop through the morning, turning heavy and thundery at times.

The outlook for Friday to Sunday is: “Brisk northwesterly winds on Friday bringing cloud, occasional sunny intervals and the chance of showers. Possibly turning more generally wet on Saturday, with further showers on Sunday. Feeling cool.”