The mayor of London says a heat wave that has brought temperatures of 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) is causing a huge surge in the number of fires in the city. Mayor Sadiq Khan said on Tuesday the fire service is under immense pressure. The blazes include a grass fire in Wennington on the eastern edge of the city that is being tackled by 100 firefighters. The London Fire Brigade said it had declared a major incident, which means it can call on resources from other emergency services.
The UK broke an unwelcome record on Tuesday when Heathrow in south-west London recorded 40.2 degrees Celsius on the hottest day ever experienced in the country. The reading came soon after Surrey in south-east England had broken the record of the highest temperature ever since records began at 39 degrees Celsius. The previous record high temperature was 38.7C, set in 2019 at Cambridge Botanic Garden in eastern England.
The Meteorological (Met) Office said the readings are provisional as the temperatures are expected to soar even further with other regions reporting their readings at different times of the day.
The country was braced for unprecedented temperatures on Tuesday after the ongoing heat wave resulted in the hottest night on record at 26 degrees Celsius in parts of London overnight.
The Met Office red warning of danger to life from extreme heat remains in place for much of central, northern, and south-east England, including the capital city. At least five people are believed to have drowned after attempting to escape the heat in rivers and lakes.
