Yellow heat health alerts have come into force as the fifth heatwave of the year bears down on the UK, with temperatures set to soar to 36C next week. The alerts became active at 9am on Saturday and will remain in place until 9pm on Tuesday.
The warnings indicate that hot weather is likely to affect the population's wellbeing and put additional pressure on healthcare services. The Met Office said temperatures will rise through the weekend before heatwave conditions return next week, with highs of 36C forecast in parts of East Anglia and south-east England by Thursday.
Record Heatwaves Linked to Excess Deaths
Two record-breaking heatwaves in May and June were linked to more than 2,800 excess deaths, while two further heatwaves in July have contributed to drought conditions and wildfires. The highest temperature of the year so far was 38C, recorded at Lingwood in Norfolk on June 28.
There have already been 33 days this year when temperatures have exceeded 30C somewhere in the UK, putting the country on course to break the record of 34 days set in 1995.
Weekend Weather Split
Forecasters expect a north-south split in the weather this weekend, with Scotland and Northern Ireland likely to experience spells of heavy rain while England and Wales remain largely dry, sunny and increasingly warm. Temperatures could reach 30C on Saturday before rising into the low 30s across southern and south-east England on Sunday.
Highs of around 30C are possible in parts of England and Wales on Tuesday, rising to between 32C and 34C on Wednesday. The highest temperatures are currently expected on Thursday, when the mercury could reach 36C.
Health Alerts and Wildfire Risk
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has issued yellow heat health alerts covering the East Midlands, West Midlands, South East, South West, East of England, Yorkshire and the Humber and London.
The warnings come as the National Trust calls on people to sign a petition urging the Government to make tackling climate change a national mission. It follows several major wildfires across the UK in recent weeks, including blazes at Dunwich Heath in Suffolk, Headon Warren on the Isle of Wight, Llanwonno in the Rhondda Valleys in South Wales and the Cairngorms National Park in Scotland.
Fire conditions are expected to become exceptionally severe on Sunday across almost all of eastern and south-eastern England, according to the Fire Severity Index. “Exceptional” is the highest level on the scale, which uses Met Office data including rainfall, temperature and humidity to help agencies assess how severe a fire could become if one starts. It does not indicate the likelihood of a wildfire occurring.
Reservoir Levels Fall
Meanwhile, reservoir storage in England has fallen to 69%, down from 72% a week earlier and almost 12 percentage points below the long-term average for this time of year, the Environment Agency said on Friday. Storage was at 85% at the end of June, in line with the average for that point in the year, but has fallen steadily since.
Five reservoirs are now classed as having “exceptionally low” levels: Blagdon in Somerset at 54% full, Clywedog in Powys at 62%, the Dove group in Derbyshire at 74%, Hanningfield in Essex at 60% and Wimbleball in Somerset at 50%.
Last month was the driest July for England and Wales since records began in 1836, according to provisional Met Office figures. Nineteen counties across England recorded effectively no rainfall, with totals of 1mm or less throughout the entire month.
