Make most of today’s sun as end to heatwave looms
TODAY is due to be the last day of the heatwave in Wales – and for most of the nation there will be a crash back to reality.
On Monday, Usk recorded Wales’ highest temperature of the year so far, at 31°C.
The weather yesterday was also in the high 20°Cs.
Today the temperature is set to rise to around 30°C in Cardiff. Aberystwyth is set to see 28°C, as is Caernarfon.
Highs of 34°C (93°F) are forecast in west London today, which would make it the fifth consecutive day that temperatures have topped 30°C (86°F) in the UK, the Met Office said.
Music fans arriving at Glastonbury festival today will face a gruelling walk to pitch their tents, with highs of 30°C expected.
Fans aren’t expected to see the washout of previous years. While it is due to be overcast on Friday, the rest of the weekend is set to be cloudy but fine.
By tomorrow, the temperature is set to drop to around 17°C in Wales with showers expected.
The last time the country saw a similar run of hot June weather was in 1995. Elsewhere, a teenage boy drowned at Greenbooth Reservoir, a moorland beauty spot outside Rochdale, Greater Manchester, after reportedly getting into difficulties while swimming in the hot weather.
A woman in her eighties also died after being pulled from the sea at East Wittering beach in West Sussex on Monday afternoon, Sussex Police said.
In Guildford, Surrey Police said spilt oil had melted into a Tarmac road due to the scorching conditions.
The NHS has urged the elderly, children and those with medical conditions to keep cool and hydrated during the heatwave.
Those at risk are warned to stay in the shade during the hottest part of the day between 11am and 3pm.
However, the Met Office is warning that between 3am today and 6am tomorrow bouts of heavy rain and thunder will move in from the west.
The warning adds that more extensive thunderstorms may then break out over a larger part of England and Wales from late this afternoon onwards into the night, leading to torrential downpours, frequent lightning and a chance of hail.
It adds: “This could result in some disruption, more likely from late Wednesday afternoon, which may include sudden localised flooding of transport routes, homes and businesses.”