The UK is preparing for its fifth heatwave of the year, with yellow heat health alerts in force across parts of England and temperatures expected to reach 36C.
The alerts, issued by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), are in place from 9am on Saturday until 9pm on Tuesday for the East Midlands, West Midlands, South East, South West, East of England, Yorkshire and the Humber, and London. They caution that the scorching conditions are likely to impact the wellbeing of the general public.
Forecast and Temperature Rise
The Met Office has warned that temperatures will rise throughout the weekend as heatwave conditions return, with highs of 36C forecast for parts of East Anglia and south-east England by Thursday. Forecasters predict a north-south divide, with Scotland and Northern Ireland likely to see heavy downpours, while England and Wales remain largely dry, sunny, and increasingly warm.
Temperatures could hit 30C on Saturday, climb into the low 30s across southern and south-east England on Sunday, and reach up to 30C across parts of England and Wales on Tuesday. They are then expected to rise to between 32C and 34C on Wednesday, with the hottest conditions currently expected on Thursday.
Record-Breaking Year
This year has already seen two record-breaking heatwaves in May and June, resulting in more than 2,800 excess deaths. Two further heatwaves in July have fuelled drought and wildfires across the country. The peak temperature recorded this year was 38C, measured at Lingwood in Norfolk on June 28.
A total of 33 days this year have seen temperatures surpass 30C somewhere in the UK. The all-time record of 34 days, set in 1995, looks set to be broken as early as next week.
Wildfires and Fire Severity
The National Trust is urging people to sign a petition calling on the Government to make tackling climate change a national mission, following a series of wildfires across the UK. Major blazes have occurred at Dunwich Heath in Suffolk, Headon Warren on the Isle of Wight, Llanwonno in the Rhondda Valleys, South Wales, and the Cairngorms National Park in Scotland.
According to the Fire Severity Index, fires are likely to become exceptionally severe on Sunday for almost all of the east and south-east of England. "Exceptional" severity is its highest ranking. Met Office data, which takes into account rainfall, temperature and humidity, is used by agencies to gauge how severe a fire could become, but it does not cover the likelihood of wildfires occurring.
Drought and Reservoir Levels
Reservoir storage in England has dropped to 69%, down from 72% a week ago and nearly 12 percentage points below the long-term average for this time of year, the Environment Agency confirmed on Friday. Storage stood at 85% at the end of June but has fallen steadily over recent weeks.
Five reservoirs are now classified as having "exceptionally low" levels: Blagdon in Somerset (54% full); Clywedog in Powys, which supplies water for central and north-west England (62%); the Dove group of reservoirs in Derbyshire (74%); Hanningfield in Essex (60%); and Wimbleball in Somerset (50%).
Last month was the driest July for England and Wales since records began in 1836, according to provisional figures released by the Met Office. Nineteen counties across England recorded effectively no rainfall – 1mm or less – throughout the entire month.
