For the first time ever, 40°C has been exceeded in the UK. London Heathrow reported a temperature of 40.2°C (104°F) AT 12:50 pm Tuesday. The previous National Record was 101.7°F. Reports show roughly 3% of homes in the UK and about 5% in France have Air Conditioning.
Top temperatures recorded in the UK on Tuesday:
Coningsby: 40.3°C = 104.5°F
St Jame’s Park: 40.2°C = 104.4°F
Heathrow: 40.2°C = 104.4°F
Kew Gardens: 40.1°C = 104.3°F
Met Office issued their first ever Red Warning for extreme heat on Monday and Tuesday. This included a large portion of England including London, Manchester, Birmingham and York.
Top temperatures recorded in the UK on Monday:
Santon Downham: 38.1°C = 100.6°F
Cavendish: 37.9°C = 100.2°F
Cambridge: 37.5°C = 99.5°F
Kew Gardens: 37.4°C = 99.3°F
Wittering: 37.3°C = 99.1°F
Hawarden, Flintshire reached 37.1°C (98.8°F) on Monday afternoon which is the highest air temperature ever recorded in Wales. The previous record was 35.2°C in 1990. The average high temperatures in Wales in July is near 21°C which is 70°F.
Rail services were limited for fear the tracks would buckle as temperatures soared. According to the BBC “The Ministry of Defence said aircraft were using alternative airfields after reports of the tarmac melting on the runway at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire.”
The soaring temperatures have been fuel for wildfires which have left hundreds injured and thousands of acres burned.
