A senior meteorologist has warned that the UK is on course for regular 'super heatwaves' with temperatures reaching 40°C, as the country experiences its second major heatwave of the year. Jim Dale, who has spent 40 years warning about global warming, said the planet is close to a tipping point and that extreme heat is becoming commonplace due to climate change.
Current Heatwave and Warnings
The UK is baking in a second heatwave that could see the hottest June on record, with temperatures expected to reach 40°C. The Met Office has issued a four-day extreme heat warning across large parts of the UK, including a red 'danger to life' warning covering a swathe of southern England and Wales from parts of Kent to Swansea. This is only the second time the red warning has been issued, the first being during the summer of 2022.
The scorching weather has led to school closures, train and London Underground disruption, and a danger to life warning. Greta Thunberg told Metro that the blistering temperatures are 'only the beginning' and accused UK leaders of having 'their heads completely buried in the sand' over the climate crisis.
Global Record-Breaking Temperatures
Mr Dale highlighted that the top 10 global and UK temperatures have nearly all occurred in the last 20 years. 'The dots are very clear, and they make a picture; one of records falling left, right and centre,' he said. 'It's not just air temperature records, it's sea temperatures too, with record levels in the Mediterranean even in June, never mind July and August.'
He noted 46°C recorded in southwest Spain last summer, their hottest June ever, and said these records are broken due to climate change, record CO2 levels, and fossil fuel emissions. 'The more energy you put into the atmosphere, the oceans, the more those molecules fly around and you see these increases. It's like boiling milk on a stove where you turn the heat up, you get the steam, then the bubbles and then it boils over. We are at the bubbling stage, and I don't see anything at this moment in time that would take the dial down.'
Impact on Health and Infrastructure
Globally, heatwaves have been linked with rises in heat-related deaths by the World Health Organisation (WHO). Mr Dale said: 'The WHO estimate that between 2022 and 2024, there were around 160,000 excess heat deaths across Europe, in other words, deaths that would not have happened if a certain temperature hadn't been reached for several days.'
He warned that 50°C for six or seven days in a row in the UK would be a disaster for infrastructure, roads, the NHS, and people. 'The danger is here and now but it's particularly for our children and grandchildren, because they'll be the ones picking up the ashes. They'll have the difficulty going forward because 40°C becomes 50°C very quickly within their lifetimes.'
Adaptation and Action Needed
Mr Dale called for changes in diet and house building to adapt to a warmer climate and said climate change denial must be debunked. He noted that the UK is committed to reaching net zero by 2050, but urged faster action. 'Forty years ago, I said that we were moving towards a Mediterranean climate. What I and others have predicted in previous decades is coming true now, and we need to act faster.'
Earlier this week, London was hit with an early morning thunderstorm causing two house fires and localised flooding, forcing the closure of Balham Tube station and the suspension of the Elizabeth Line at Heathrow. Last summer, wildfires raged across Europe, with at least 10 firefighters dying in Turkey and evacuations in France and Spain.
