People turn to watch the sunrise at Cullercoats Bay, North Tyneside. Britons will melt on the UK’s hottest day on record as temperatures are predicted to hit 40°C. Capture date: Tuesday 19 July 2022.
Owen Humphreys | Picture Pa | beautiful pictures
LONDON – Britain recorded its hottest day ever on Tuesday, with temperatures reaching a peak of 40.3 degrees Celsius (104.5 degrees Fahrenheit) in the east of England, as the rescue service London’s Fire Department tackles many fires across the capital.
Interim figures from the UK weather service showed Coningsby, Lincolnshire, hit a new high on Tuesday afternoon, surpassing two new records set earlier in the day.
Temperatures in Charlwood, Surrey, reached 39.1 degrees Celsius late Tuesday morning before Heathrow Airport, near London, rose to 40.2 degrees Celsius in the early afternoon.
The country’s previous hottest temperature was 38.7 degrees Celsius, recorded in Cambridge in 2019.
It comes as Britons face a second day of extreme heatwaves, which are causing widespread disruption and increasing the risk of bushfires.
The Met Office said on Twitter: “If confirmed, this would be the highest temperature ever recorded in the UK. Temperatures are likely to rise further today.”
Temperatures are forecast to reach as high as 42 degrees Celsius in parts of Britain on Tuesday afternoon, according to the Met Office, which released red extreme temperature warning. Health authorities urge people to take precautions, including staying indoors and drinking plenty of fluids.
The country is also on high alert for bushfires, with south-east England at “very dangerous”, according to the European Forest Fire Information System.
A car drives near flames burning during a heatwave, in Rainham, east London, England, July 19, 2022.
Tony O’brien | Reuters
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said the capital’s fire brigade had declared a “major incident” following a “massive increase” in fires across the city on Tuesday.
The fire department emphasized the dry condition of the tin. At least one house was completely destroyed and several others severely damaged after a grass fire broke out in a village in an east London suburb. Sky News reported.
Several suspected wildfires have been reported across the country, including at a golf course near Birmingham and some areas in west Cornwall.
It comes as parts of Europe and North Africa are also currently experiencing extreme temperatures, with wildfires breaking out in France, Spain, Portugal, Greece and Morocco.
Brits endure hottest night ever
Millions of Britons endured the country’s hottest night ever on Monday, with temperatures remaining above 25 degrees Celsius in places, beating the previous nightly record of 23.9 degrees. C was recorded in Brighton in 1990.
It follows a day of extreme heat on Monday in which a peak of 38.1 degrees Celsius was reached in Suffolk in the east of England – just below the UK record.
High temperatures are especially difficult for a country with little infrastructure or amenities like air conditioning to deal with hot weather.
The UK’s Met Office says extreme temperatures in the country are 10 times more likely to be affected by climate change.
Anadolu Agency | Anadolu Agency | beautiful pictures
Emergency services have been put on high alert across the country as they face an increase in weather-related incidents, with several deaths already reported.
Some schools closed early on Monday, or didn’t open at all, despite government advice to stay open.
Meanwhile, water utilities in the south of England reported a “unusual” increase in demand due to weather, which they say could lead to low pressure or even supply disruption.
Infrastructure struggles under the heat
Rising temperatures have also led to travel chaos for commuters and commuters as hundreds of services have been halted.
Runways at both Luton Airport in London and RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire were affected by the heat, causing planes to be diverted and flights cancelled.
Meanwhile, rail services have been hit hard, with reports of warped tracks and broken overhead wiring. In some areas, cancellations and 20 mph speed limits have been put in place.
Britain’s Transport Secretary, Grant Shapps, told the BBC the country’s rail network could not cope with the intense heat, adding that the upgrade was to help services cope with the heat. extremes will take “years”.
“Closed 19th due to heat wave” was written on a notice hanging over a closed store. In the London area, temperatures can soar up to 40 degrees.
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“We’re building new specifications, creating overhead lines that can withstand higher temperatures. But with the best will in the world, this is infrastructure that has taken decades. to build, with some of our railways spanning 200 years,” he told the BBC on Tuesday.
It occurs as heat waves become more common and more severe due to human-caused climate change. Indeed, the UK’s Met Office says extreme temperatures in the country are 10 times more likely to be affected by climate change.
The average temperature in the world has increased by just over 1 degree Celsius from their pre-industrial level and expected to rise 2.4 degrees Celsius to 4 degrees Celsius by the end of this century, depending on global efforts to cut CO2 emissions.
Greg Dewerpe, founder and chief investment officer of venture capital firm A/O PropTech, told CNBC on Tuesday that about $10 trillion a year needs to be invested in buildings and infrastructure between now and 2050 to help countries better cope with the new reality.
“If you look at the construction world as a whole, there is about $10 trillion a year that needs to be invested in retrofit technologies for homes, for offices, for all types of buildings around,” he said. around us,” he said.
“The technologies that will allow us to transform in terms of decarbonization and resilience are key,” added Dewerpe.
