LONDON – England broke the record for the highest temperature ever registered on Tuesday amid a heatwave raging across Europe, as the UK’s national weather agency said such highs were now real. The economy of life in a country is not prepared for such extremes.
This typically temperate country is just the latest to be besieged by unusually hot dry weather that has sparked wildfires from Portugal to the Balkans and resulted in hundreds of heat-related deaths. Images of flames racing towards a beach in France and Britons burning – even by the sea – have alarmed climate change experts.
England Met Office The weather agency registered a provisional reading of 40.3 degrees Celsius (104.5 degrees Fahrenheit) at Coningsby in eastern England – breaking the record set just hours earlier. Before Tuesday, the highest temperature recorded in the UK was 38.7 C (101.7 F), set in 2019. By later afternoon, 29 locations in the UK had broken the record.
As the nation watches with a mix of horror and fascination, Met . office chief scientist Stephen Belcher said such temperatures in the UK would be “virtually impossible” without human-driven climate change.
He warned that “we could see temperatures like this every three years” without serious action on carbon emissions.
The hot weather has disrupted travel, healthcare and schools. Many homes, small businesses and even public buildings, including hospitals, do not have air conditioning in the UK, reflecting how unusually hot the country is. with rain and mild temperatures.
Severe heat since Monday damaged the runway at London’s Luton airport, forcing it to close for several hours and warping a main road in eastern England, police said. like a “skate park,” police said. Major train stations were closed or nearly empty on Tuesday, as trains were canceled or running at low speeds over concerns the tracks could warp.
London has faced what Mayor Sadiq Khan has called a “spiking fire” because of the heat. The London Fire Brigade listed 10 major fires it had to fight across the city on Tuesday, half of which were grass fires. Pictures showed several houses engulfed in flames as smoke rose from burning fields in Wennington, a village in the east London suburbs.
Fan sales at one retailer, Asda, increased 1,300%. Electric fans cool the traditionally mounted troops of the Household Cavalry as they stand guard in central London in heavy ceremonial uniforms. The other guards eased their duties to avoid the sun. The capital’s Hyde Park, normally teeming with pedestrians, is eerily quiet – except for the long lines for a dip in the Serpentine lake.
Geologist Tom Elliott, 31, said after going swimming: “I’m going to my office because it’s so nice and cool.
Always steadfast, Queen Elizabeth II continued to work. The 96-year-old monarch hosted a virtual audience with new US ambassador Jane Hartley from the safety of Windsor Castle.
A large swath of Britain, from London in the south to Manchester and Leeds in the north, remained on the country’s first “red” warning for extreme heat on Tuesday, meaning there was a risk death even in healthy people.
Such dangers can be seen in the UK and throughout Europe. At least six people are reported to have drowned trying to cool off in rivers, lakes and reservoirs across the UK In Spain and neighboring Portugal, nearly 750 heat-related deaths have been reported. reported during a heatwave there.
Climate experts warn that global warming has increased the frequency of extreme weather events, with studies showing the possibility of temperatures in the UK reaching 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) now. 10 times higher than in pre-industrial times.
The head of the United Nations’ weather agency expressed hope that the heat sweeping across Europe would be a “wake-up call” for governments to do more on climate change. Other scientists have used the critical moment to emphasize that it is time to act.
Friederike Otto, Senior Lecturer in Climate Science at Imperial College London’s Grantham Institute, said: “While still rare, 40C is now a summer reality in the UK. “Whether it becomes a very common or relatively infrequent occurrence is in our hands and is determined by when and at what global average temperature we reach zero.”
Droughts and heat waves associated with climate change also make wildfires more common and harder to extinguish.
In the Gironde region of southwestern France, raging wildfires continued to spread through arid pine forests, foiling the firefighting efforts of more than 2,000 firefighters and water bombers.
Gironde authorities say tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes and vacation spots since the fire broke out on July 12.
A third, smaller fire broke out late Monday in the Medoc wine region north of Bordeaux, continuing to tax resources. Five campsites raged on the Atlantic coast beach area, where fires broke out around the Arcachon Sea Basin known for its oysters and resorts.
In Greece, a large forest fire broke out northeast of Athens, driven by high winds. Fire Department officials said nine fire planes and four helicopters were deployed to try to prevent the blaze from reaching inhabited areas on the slopes of Mount Penteli, about 25 kilometers from the capital. 16 miles) to the northeast. Smoke from the fire covered part of the city’s skyline.
But the weather forecasts have offered some solace, with temperatures expected to drop along the Atlantic coast on Tuesday and rain likely later in the day.
The UK is not the only Nordic country experiencing unusually hot weather. As Amsterdam launched on Tuesday, city workers sprayed water on some of the mechanical bridges that span the Dutch city’s canals to prevent the metal in them from expanding, which could clog them. , which clogs up traffic by boat. Temperatures in the city are expected to reach 39 degrees Celsius (102 degrees Fahrenheit) on Tuesday.
This typically temperate country is just the latest to be besieged by unusually hot dry weather that has sparked wildfires from Portugal to the Balkans and resulted in hundreds of heat-related deaths. Images of flames racing towards a beach in France and Britons burning – even by the sea – have alarmed climate change experts.
England Met Office The weather agency registered a provisional reading of 40.3 degrees Celsius (104.5 degrees Fahrenheit) at Coningsby in eastern England – breaking the record set just hours earlier. Before Tuesday, the highest temperature recorded in the UK was 38.7 C (101.7 F), set in 2019. By later afternoon, 29 locations in the UK had broken the record.
As the nation watches with a mix of horror and fascination, Met . office chief scientist Stephen Belcher said such temperatures in the UK would be “virtually impossible” without human-driven climate change.
He warned that “we could see temperatures like this every three years” without serious action on carbon emissions.
The hot weather has disrupted travel, healthcare and schools. Many homes, small businesses and even public buildings, including hospitals, do not have air conditioning in the UK, reflecting how unusually hot the country is. with rain and mild temperatures.
Severe heat since Monday damaged the runway at London’s Luton airport, forcing it to close for several hours and warping a main road in eastern England, police said. like a “skate park,” police said. Major train stations were closed or nearly empty on Tuesday, as trains were canceled or running at low speeds over concerns the tracks could warp.
London has faced what Mayor Sadiq Khan has called a “spiking fire” because of the heat. The London Fire Brigade listed 10 major fires it had to fight across the city on Tuesday, half of which were grass fires. Pictures showed several houses engulfed in flames as smoke rose from burning fields in Wennington, a village in the east London suburbs.
Fan sales at one retailer, Asda, increased 1,300%. Electric fans cool the traditionally mounted troops of the Household Cavalry as they stand guard in central London in heavy ceremonial uniforms. The other guards eased their duties to avoid the sun. The capital’s Hyde Park, normally teeming with pedestrians, is eerily quiet – except for the long lines for a dip in the Serpentine lake.
Geologist Tom Elliott, 31, said after going swimming: “I’m going to my office because it’s so nice and cool.
Always steadfast, Queen Elizabeth II continued to work. The 96-year-old monarch hosted a virtual audience with new US ambassador Jane Hartley from the safety of Windsor Castle.
A large swath of Britain, from London in the south to Manchester and Leeds in the north, remained on the country’s first “red” warning for extreme heat on Tuesday, meaning there was a risk death even in healthy people.
Such dangers can be seen in the UK and throughout Europe. At least six people are reported to have drowned trying to cool off in rivers, lakes and reservoirs across the UK In Spain and neighboring Portugal, nearly 750 heat-related deaths have been reported. reported during a heatwave there.
Climate experts warn that global warming has increased the frequency of extreme weather events, with studies showing the possibility of temperatures in the UK reaching 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) now. 10 times higher than in pre-industrial times.
The head of the United Nations’ weather agency expressed hope that the heat sweeping across Europe would be a “wake-up call” for governments to do more on climate change. Other scientists have used the critical moment to emphasize that it is time to act.
Friederike Otto, Senior Lecturer in Climate Science at Imperial College London’s Grantham Institute, said: “While still rare, 40C is now a summer reality in the UK. “Whether it becomes a very common or relatively infrequent occurrence is in our hands and is determined by when and at what global average temperature we reach zero.”
Droughts and heat waves associated with climate change also make wildfires more common and harder to extinguish.
In the Gironde region of southwestern France, raging wildfires continued to spread through arid pine forests, foiling the firefighting efforts of more than 2,000 firefighters and water bombers.
Gironde authorities say tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes and vacation spots since the fire broke out on July 12.
A third, smaller fire broke out late Monday in the Medoc wine region north of Bordeaux, continuing to tax resources. Five campsites raged on the Atlantic coast beach area, where fires broke out around the Arcachon Sea Basin known for its oysters and resorts.
In Greece, a large forest fire broke out northeast of Athens, driven by high winds. Fire Department officials said nine fire planes and four helicopters were deployed to try to prevent the blaze from reaching inhabited areas on the slopes of Mount Penteli, about 25 kilometers from the capital. 16 miles) to the northeast. Smoke from the fire covered part of the city’s skyline.
But the weather forecasts have offered some solace, with temperatures expected to drop along the Atlantic coast on Tuesday and rain likely later in the day.
The UK is not the only Nordic country experiencing unusually hot weather. As Amsterdam launched on Tuesday, city workers sprayed water on some of the mechanical bridges that span the Dutch city’s canals to prevent the metal in them from expanding, which could clog them. , which clogs up traffic by boat. Temperatures in the city are expected to reach 39 degrees Celsius (102 degrees Fahrenheit) on Tuesday.
