UK sets new record high temperature after recording 40.3ºC in Lincolnshire

London Fire Department on alert as fires in the capital increase

UK weather authorities on Tuesday recorded 40.3 degrees Celsius for the first time in history in the Lincolnshire region (east), surpassing the previous figure of 40.2ºC confirmed earlier Tuesday at London Heathrow Airport.

The figure was reached at 16.00 hours (local time) as the United Kingdom goes through a strong heat wave that has led some areas of Wales to issue the red alert for extreme heat, according to reports from the newspaper ‘The Guardian’.

The country recorded its hottest night on Monday with temperatures hovering around 25°C. However, Scotland Yard has warned that high temperatures will continue to rise throughout Tuesday.

United Kingdom thus chains three temperature records in the same day, as this morning the county of Surrey, south of London, recorded 39.1ºC, surpassing the previous high of 38.7ºC in 2019.

On Friday, British authorities already declared for the first time a national state of emergency in the face of the record temperatures they expected to record this week, especially on Monday and Tuesday.

Thus, the UK Health Safety Agency (UKHSA) decided to increase the “heat and health warning” alert to level 4, the highest possible.

The organization’s chief executive, Penny Endersby, has described the extreme heat forecast as “absolutely unprecedented” and urged the public to take the warnings seriously.

On the other hand, the mayor of the British capital, Sadiq Jan, has reported that the London Fire Brigade has declared a “major incident” due to the large number of fires in the capital territory.

“This is critical. The Fire Department is under immense pressure. Please be careful,” Jan has said on his social networks, where he has advanced that he is in contact with the authorities to closely follow the events.

In fact, the mayor has asked “not to take risks” and not to light barbecues, not to leave bottles or glass on the ground, to make sure to extinguish cigarettes properly and to report as soon as possible in case of witnessing new fires.

In this context, the British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, thanked the London Fire Brigade officers and those who have been on the front line to extinguish the flames of the fires in the capital.

“I urge everyone to follow the advice of the emergency services, including the London Fire Department, as they respond to incidents,” Johnson said on his social media.

The Met Office has warned that most of England is under “exceptional” risk of recording wildfires, including the southwest and northern regions.