The London Ambulance Service (LAS) chief operating officer Craig Harman has warned people to drink responsibly and avoid exercising outdoors as a punishing heatwave continues to break June temperature records across the UK.
Record-Breaking Temperatures
The Met Office reported that temperatures reached 36.7C in Merryfield, Somerset, on Thursday afternoon, provisionally making it the UK's hottest June day on record. Wales also saw its hottest June day on Thursday with 35.9C in Cardiff, while Northern Ireland matched its previous June record of 30.8C in Castlederg.
Red weather warnings for extreme heat have been extended until 9pm on Friday for London and parts of east and southeast England, including Oxfordshire, Bedfordshire, Hampshire, and Kent. This marks the first time the Met Office has issued red heat warnings for three consecutive days.
Ambulance Service Under Strain
LAS responded to its highest number of life-threatening emergencies ever on Wednesday, with a 50% increase in such calls compared to a typical Wednesday in June. Cardiac arrests rose by 30%. Harman said they expect “demand to grow day on day over the next couple of days”.
As football fans prepare to cheer for England during Saturday's World Cup game, Harman advised people to drink “plenty of water” between alcoholic beverages. He stressed that it is not just the elderly and those with underlying health conditions affected by the heat, adding: “I'm saying to people I need you to drink water even when you're not thirsty, staying out of the sun during the hottest parts of the day, and particularly not exercising outside and putting your body under additional heat and strain.”
Disruptions and Incidents
Schools and nurseries have been forced to close, and a hosepipe ban has been implemented in Kent due to surging demand. Transport services face disruptions, with one rail operator urging people not to travel for beach trips because of the extreme heat.
A 50-year-old man from Cilfrew, Neath Port Talbot, Wales, died after entering the water at Aberavon beach on Wednesday, police said. Firefighters in Derbyshire continued battling a 500 square metre wildfire on Tintwistle Moor on Thursday evening, with video showing billowing smoke and flames consuming trees.
Hospitals Declare Critical Incidents
Several hospitals have declared critical incidents amid the heatwave. University Hospital Southampton was forced to cancel a number of planned operations and outpatient appointments. Queen Alexandra Hospital in Portsmouth and Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust both declared critical incidents on Wednesday.
London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan has called for air conditioning to be rolled out to schools, offices, and hospitals in the capital as it adapts to more intense and frequent heatwaves, launching the city's first heat plan to keep Londoners safe.
Weather Forecast
The current heatwave is driven by a “heat-dome” – an area of high pressure that stalls over a region and traps heat – settling over western Europe. Human-driven climate change, mostly caused by burning fossil fuels, is making such extreme heatwaves more frequent and intense.
Amber heat warnings are in place for a wider area on Friday and extend into Saturday for parts of east and southeast England. A yellow warning for thunderstorms is in effect for southwest England on Thursday night, while swathes of Scotland, England, Wales, and Northern Ireland face yellow thunderstorm warnings on Friday.
Annie Shuttleworth, a Met Office meteorologist, said lightning is likely on Thursday night for some areas in the Southwest, with rain in more northern areas on Friday morning. Eastern England is expected to see the highest temperatures on Friday, but things will “finally cool down this weekend”.
