LEIGH was hit by a dramatic thunder and lightning storm overnight.

Residents reported hearing the storm hit during the night, following a warm Monday, which kept many awake in the early hours.

Heavy rain was also heard battering down during the storm.

The Met Office had issued a yellow weather warning for thunderstorms, covering the whole north west region which remains in effect for 48 hours.

Forecasting the storm, a Met Office spokesman said last week: “Areas of thunderstorms are increasingly likely to develop over the south of the UK late in the weekend or early next week, and will generally track north or north-westwards.

“While the most intense thunderstorms, in some instances associated with large hail, will most probably be those triggered by the high temperatures of the day over England and Wales, other areas of storms producing heavy rainfall and frequent lightning could reach further north.

“These could occur at any time of the day.

“Where the storms occur, rainfall totals of 30 to 40mm could fall in an hour, with some locations potentially receiving 60 to 80mm in three hours, although these will be fairly isolated.”

  • Did you capture any images or video of last night's storm from Leigh and the surrounding areas? Feel free to share them with us to simon.mulligan@nqnw.co.uk or on our social media pages.