A bolt of lightning striking the home of a young family was among the numerous calls keeping firefighters from Folkestone on their toes throughout the night.

The town's Green Watch received a stream of calls and attended five callouts, ranging from an electrical box alight to the strike.

The house, in Octavian Drive, Lympne, was hit amid storms which buffeted the town in the early hours.

The storms have caused disruption across Kent, leading to evacuated homes and commuter chaos this morning.

Two engines from Folkestone and Hythe attended the scene at around 2am this morning.

Watch manager Mick Burgess said that roof tiles on the property were missing following the strike, but there were no signs of fire and the young family inside were unharmed.

Monsoon-like rain beat down over the town, leading to flooding in Sandgate.

A crew from Green Watch had to pump flood water from a home in The Riviera at around 3.50am.

An electrical box also burst into flames at around 6.15am. Crews dealt with the fire and made the scene safe, while UK Power Networks arrived.