May hols roaster hits 26C

BRITAIN baked on one of the hottest days of the year yesterday.

Now thousands are expected to pull sickies to soak up the sun again today – dubbed Skive Tuesday – following the incredible bank holiday heatwave.

Temperatures hit 26C making it one of the hottest Whit Mondays for two centuries.

But torrential rain and flash floods peppered the South and Midlands with the Environment Agency, putting dozens of warnings and alerts in place.

The economy faces a £175million drop with 70% of workers tempted to pull a sickie in the hot weather. Weather Outlook forecaster Brian Gaze said: “It looks like a ‘Skiving Tuesday’ as some employees will call in sick to take advantage of the sunshine.

“It stays very warm with temperatures above 27C in the second half of the week but thunderstorms are possible for much of the UK.”

Sunseekers swarmed to beaches including Brighton, Blackpool and Bournemouth. But downpours in Birmingham saw flood water up to 5ft deep and families faced dangerous conditions as they drove home after the holiday.

A man in his 80s died after his car was submerged in flash floods in Walsall, West Mids, with locals desperately trying to smash the vehicle’s window.

The Environment Agency had 20 flood warnings and 40 alerts in place, although that number dipped as the bank holiday progressed.

Met Office forecaster Emma Sillitoe said: “Thunderstorms are likely today in the south, and on Wednesday night more widespread across England, Wales and Scotland.

“We could see more flooding. But it stays hot with sunny spells for half-term.”

Temperatures hit a high of 26.2C in Portsmouth yesterday.

The hottest May 28 since records began in 1841 remains the 28.3C reading at London’s Kensington Palace in 1944.