People across the county flocked to parks and beaches to bask in the sunshine on the hottest day of the year - but thunderstorms may be on the way.

Figures from the Met Office showed temperatures in Norfolk soared to up 32C on Friday as the UK had the third hottest day on record.

In the county, the hot weather has caused problems for trains, with services suspended between Cromer and Sheringham and cancellations between Norwich and Great Yarmouth.

Meanwhile, in West Norfolk there were reports of queues of up to 10 miles as people drove to the coast.

Firefighters were also called out to two grass fires in Brooke and Thieves’ Bridge Road in Watlington.

A yellow weather warning is in place for the region from 4pm to midnight.

READ MORE: Weather warning for thunderstorms as temperatures soar The warning says most places will stay dry by “isolated thunderstorms may cause some travel disruption.”

It added there may be some damage to a few buildings and structures due to lightning strikes and warned there may be a short term loss of power.

The warning said: “Some flooding of a few homes and businesses is possible. There is a small chance that driving conditions will be affected by spray, standing water and/or hail, leading to longer journey times by car and bus.”

The weekend, however, is set to be slightly cooler across the county, though still hot with highs of 27C forecast on Saturday.

Elsewhere, the mercury hit 37.8C at London’s Heathrow Airport at 2.41pm and also reached 37.3C at Kew Gardens, in west London, the Met Office said.

Forecaster Simon Partridge said: “This not only makes it the warmest day of the year, it also makes it the third hottest UK day on record.”

READ MORE: Coastguard delayed getting to six people in difficulty after beachgoers cause gridlock in village

The current temperature record was registered at 38.7C at Cambridge University Botanic Gardens last year, while the second hottest day was August, 10 2003, when the mercury rose to 38.5C in Faversham, Kent.

The UK has already surpassed 100pc of the average monthly rainfall and only experienced two thirds (66pc) of the expected sunshine for an average July, a total of 113.4 hours, Met Office figures show.