The NHS website has experienced a dramatic increase in visits as the public sought advice on coping with the record-breaking hot weather. On Tuesday, the hottest May day on record was registered in England and Wales, with Kew Gardens reaching 35.1C and Cardiff Bute Park hitting 32.9C.
NHS England reported that its heatstroke advice page received 20,092 hits on bank holiday Monday alone, compared to just 488 the previous Monday. Over the weekend, the page accumulated 36,724 views. Sunburn advice pages also saw a surge, with 5,342 visits on Monday and 10,314 over the weekend.
Parents particularly sought guidance on keeping babies safe in the sun, with visits to NHS web pages for baby first aid and sun safety tips soaring by almost 3,500% on Monday, totalling 4,728 hits. Duncan Burton, chief nursing officer for England, urged caution, noting that babies, children, older people, and those with long-term conditions are at higher risk of heat exhaustion or heatstroke.
Health officials have extended heat health alerts for several parts of England until 5pm Thursday. The UK Health Security Agency has amber alerts in place for the South West, South East, London, East and West Midlands, and East of England, with yellow alerts for the North West and North East.
Tragically, several people have died after struggling in open water during the heatwave, including a 15-year-old boy in Lincolnshire and a 13-year-old boy in West Yorkshire. The RNLI warned of the risk of cold water shock, as water temperatures remain low despite the high air temperatures.
