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The scorching hot weather this week has seen roads melt and rail firms impose speed restrictions due to affected tracks, whilst a Leicestershire school has cancelled its sports day amid expected higher temperatures today and tomorrow.
Sun-lovers in London and the South East are set to experience temperatures of up to 85F (29.4C) today before the hottest day of the year hits tomorrow.
This week has already seen glorious sunshine and clear skies across much of England and Wales, with tourists flocking to hotspots including Westminster Bridge and Richmond Park in the capital.
Today’s temperatures are set to outstrip yesterday’s sunny weather, where the mercury hit 82F (28C), with the warm weather driven by hot air from Spain and Portugal.
Both countries have seen temperatures topping 104F (40C) amid an ongoing heatwave.
The hot weather is expected to climb to a 93F (34C) ‘crescendo’ in the South East tomorrow with the rest of England and Wales set to see between 27C (81F) and 30C (86F).
Britain’s highest recorded June temperature was 35.6C (96F) at Southampton Mayflower Park on June 28, 1976.
The extreme heat prompted a Leicestershire school to cancel its sports day due to fears children are ‘not used to’ the searing temperatures.
And commuters are set to face rail woes ahead of next week’s crippling strikes as the hot weather forces operators to impose speed restrictions on some lines due to the heat affecting tracks. Network Rail warned that hot weather can ‘severely impact train services’.
Meanwhile, in Suffolk, the A140 was closed for two hours yesterday after the sun began melting the road surface, forcing fuming drivers to sit in hot cars for two hours.
However, heavy showers and thunderstorms are set to break the spell of hot weather from Saturday and into Sunday across England and Wales, with temperatures in London set to plummet to 20F.
The rain will begin on Friday evening in Scotland and Northern Ireland, where temperatures will only hit 70F despite the heatwave elsewhere.
Next week, the dimmer outlook will continue, with sunshine marred by cloud cover and temperatures remaining far lower than tomorrow’s expected peak.
The scorching hot weather this week has seen roads melt and rail firms impose speed restrictions due to affected tracks, whilst a Leicestershire school has cancelled its sports day amid expected higher temperatures today and tomorrow. Above: Commuters bask in the early morning sunshine today as they make their way to work
A racegoer arrives on day three of Royal Ascot at Ascot Racecourse this morning, with punters set to enjoy sunshine and temperatures of up to 85F
Met Office spokesman Grahame Madge said: ‘We have got high pressure at the moment so we are getting a certain amount of natural home-grown heat building up because obviously we have got clear skies and fairly dry ground conditions across southern England.
‘We have also got warmer air being brought up from further south in Europe where there has been a major heat incident, particularly in Iberia, so that’s leading to the sort of crescendo we will see on Friday.
‘Because of the direction of the flow, with the weather pattern we have got set up in our latitude, that is encouraging this warm flow of air to come further north.
‘We have got the heat building day by day. The next couple of days will be hotter than the preceding day.
‘We think at the moment, although there is some uncertainty, that the weather temperatures will peak on Friday and then largely we will be in for a cooler day on Saturday.
‘Heat may remain potentially into Saturday but for most parts of the UK, because we have got a cold front moving down from further north, we will see temperatures coming back down – but they may just hang on in southern England.’
He said temperatures will potentially peak on Friday.
Dr Mark McCarthy, head of the Met Office’s National Climate Information Centre, said: ‘Climate change has increased the average temperature of UK summers, and it is also increasing the likelihood of experiencing more extreme temperatures.
‘Reaching 34C during June is a rare, but not unprecedented, event in the historical climate records for the UK.But if it should happen this week it would be notable that it would have occurred on three days during the last six Junes.’
Healthcare staff have been told to plan for how the hot weather will affect patients, after a level-three heat-health alert was issued by the Met Office and the UK Health Security Agency for most of south-east and eastern England.
Meanwhile, motoring group the RAC warned of a ‘short sharp spike in breakdowns’ and advised drivers to check oil and coolant levels.
Richmond Park Primary School, in Hinckley, Leicestershire, announced that it is cancelling its upcoming sports day due to the hot weather.
Parents and carers were set to join children in a series of competitive races in the afternoon.
Today’s temperatures are set to outstrip yesterday’s sunny weather, where the mercury hit 82F (28C), with the warm weather driven by hot air from Spain and Portugal
This week has already seen glorious sunshine and clear skies across much of England and Wales, with tourists flocking to hotspots including Westminster Bridge and Richmond Park in the capital. Above: Commuters in London this morning
The hot weather is expected to climb to a 34C (93F) ‘crescendo’ in the South East tomorrow with the rest of England and Wales set to see between 27C (81F) and 30C (86F). Above: Commuters in London this morning
However, the expected temperatures in the region of up to 86F (30C) have prompted worried staff to cancel the event.
The school said the decision had been made with the children’s welfare in mind.
The event will take place later this month, however, some sports events will still take place in the morning tomorrow before the temperature rises too high.
It said: ‘Due to the hot weather, we have made the decision to postpone the Years 4,5,6 afternoon competitive races where parents/carers were invited to attend. Sorry for the inconvenience but we feel it will be too hot for the children who are not used to these temperatures.’
Speaking of the bad weather that will follow the sunny spell, BBC forecaster Sarah Keith-Lucas said the rain will begin in Scotland and Northern Ireland overnight on Friday.
‘Head through Friday and this rain will slowly clear from Scotland and Northern Ireland, arriving across Northern England later in the afternoon,’ she said.
‘To the south of that rain band we are going to see the peak of the heat, with temperatures in the South East up as high as 33 Celsius. Typically the high teens further north.
‘But if we look at Friday’s forecast, temperatures compared to average, generally across much of England and Wales temperatures will be between five to 12 degrees above average for this time of year.’
Speaking of Saturday, she added: ‘Heavy showers and thunderstorms, bit of uncertainty about their exact positioning across England and Wales, likely to stay mostly dry and again really quite hot in the far South East, 33 [91.4F] degrees.
‘Into Sunday a similar picture. Heavy, potentially thundery showers across much of England and wales, fresher but drier for Scotland and Northern Ireland.
raders in a seaside resort have slammed officials for closing their beach in the middle of the heatwave. The sandy beach in Lyme Regis, Dorset, should be teeming with tourists this week as the temperatures soar. But instead the seafront lies empty of bathers as the local council has scheduled dredging works to take place for the whole of this week
Diggers are seen at work on the beach in Lyme Regis, Dorset. The work means the beach has been closed and sun-seekers have to find somewhere else to soak up the rays
The beach has been closed completely to the public since Monday and will not re-open until Friday evening. Locak businesses that rely on tourists have called the timing ridiculous and said it is affecting trade
The sun rises over the farmers fields this morning on what is set to be another hot day in Dunsden, Oxfordshire
Britons are set to experience some of the hottest weather of the year this week. Above: Pretty skies this morning in Dunsden, Oxfordshire
‘Probably still pretty warm in the far South-East though, could be up to 33 degrees once again. ‘
The hot weather forced train operator Chiltern Railways to impose speed restrictions on some of its lines. It runs trains from central London to destinations in Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Warwickshire and some long-distance services to the West Midlands.
A Chiltern Railways spokesman said: ‘Due to expected hot weather, speed restrictions will be imposed on the rail from today until Saturday 18th June inclusive.
‘Services will be subject to delay and cancellations. Please check your journey before you travel.’
Network Rail tweeted: ‘Temperatures are set to soar in parts of Britain this weekend.
‘Very hot weather can severely impact train services.’
Hot weather yesterday forced police in Suffolk to close a road after the tarmac began melting.
Suffolk Police warned that the A140 had to be closed after it became ‘unsafe’ due to the hot weather
The Met Office’s forecast today. Temperatures could reach as high as 93.2F (34C) tomorrow, before thunderstorms hit this weekend
Amazingly, gritters normally used on snow-covered winters roads had to be called out to the A140.
The road re-opened after two hours when temperatures began to fall last night but with even hotter weather forecast, motorists fear more closures today and tomorrow.
Drivers fuming in the heat had to find alternative routes and huge queues built up.
Suffolk Police said the busy A140 had to be shut temporarily because it had become ‘unsafe’.
They feared cars would slip and slide on the treacly surface and crash into each other.
A Suffolk Highways spokesman said ‘Some issues have been identified with the road surface along the A140 which have been made worse by the hot weather.
‘Our teams are working to maintain traffic flow, by applying grit to the road and placing ’20mph’ and ‘uneven road surface’ signs to warn road users.
‘Additional works will take place next week to repair any damaged areas of road surface. We apologise for any inconvenience this may be causing.’
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