“Here in the UK we are used to treating a hot period as an opportunity to go play in the sun. This is not that kind of time. Our lifestyles and our infrastructure do not adapt to what is to come. “
Temperatures of 41 degrees are forecast at Heathrow Airport, near London, more than two degrees higher than the current record of 38.7 degrees set in Cambridge in 2019. This is the first time 40 degrees are forecast.
Firefighters take a break after fighting a forest fire that erupted again in the village of Lagoa Parada, near Ansiao, in central Portugal. Credit: AP
Government scientists are especially concerned about the record temperatures forecast for Monday night (GMT), which means people will not have a respite from the heat of the day. The Meteorological Office expects the previous record low night temperature of 23.9 in Brighton in 1990 to be broken.
Conditions have been compared to a 2003 heat wave in France, in which 14,000 mostly elderly people died, prompting warnings from Professor Chris Whitty, England’s chief medical officer, to distrust the exhaustion and heat stroke, especially for the elderly and medically vulnerable. people.
The Meteorological Office also warned of a “high risk” of failures in heat-sensitive systems and equipment, leading to localized power outages and the loss of services such as water or mobile phone coverage. .
People go to the beach in Barcelona, Spain, on Friday. Credit: AP
The UK Health Safety Agency issued its highest-level alert, four, to healthcare organizations, signifying a national emergency. He said the heat would be so extreme that even fit and healthy adults were at risk, and urged people to moderate their behavior to avoid “preventable” deaths and reduce pressure on hospitals, not even drinking alcohol.
Matthew Taylor, executive director of the NHS Confederation, said the NHS will be under intense pressure over the next few days, “with severe bed shortages, very stretched ambulance services and various health systems all over the country that will have to declare critical incidents “.
A red lemur enjoys a block of ice full of fruit at Blair Drummond Safari Park, near Stirling, Scotland, while temperatures soared across Britain. Credit: PA / AP
The health department said it recognized that ambulance services were under significant pressure and that it was working hand in hand with the NHS to reduce delays in delivering patients to hospitals and back on the road.
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Cabinet Minister Kit Malthouse, who chaired a meeting of the civil contingency committee, known as COBRA, said the government was preparing for an “increase” in demand from the NHS and other services due to levels of demand that are not usually seen outside the winter months.
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