Mud, sweat & fears
Dramatic river rescue as parts of Britain boil...with more storms on the way
TWO people were dramatically rescued from a mudbank as the UK’s record heatwave gave way to monster downpours.
The pair, a man and a woman, were winched from the slippery side of the River Avon in Bristol city centre after fire crews used ladders to reach them. A third person managed to scramble out of the goo unaided.
It came as parts of Britain roasted while others were battered by torrential rain, lightning and hailstones.
Beaches at resorts such as Lyme Regis in Dorset were packed and Londoners wilted in 32C.
But at Cambridge drivers had to put on their headlights at lunchtime as day was suddenly plunged into night by a gigantic storm.
And parts of the M25 were hit by flash floods after “biblical rain and hail”. Last night Met Office forecasters advised the rest of south-east England to be braced for
more. And yellow warnings, indicating some risk of damage and disruption caused by the weather, were issued for the whole country until Monday.
Temperatures are expected to drop today, bringing some respite from the relentless heat – but the threat of scattered thunderstorms and heavy downpours will persist into next week. The Met Office said: “There is a small chance homes and businesses could be flooded. There could be damage to buildings from floodwater, lightning strikes, hail or winds.”
Experts also fear disruption to trains, buses and other services plus the chance of power cuts.
National Grid said it had ignited a coal-fired power station for the first time in 55 days because of the weather.
The 1960s station at Ratcliffe-on-Soar, Notts, was called upon after the heat brought wind turbines to a near-standstill and caused gas-fired plants to flounder.