80F! Summer’s back

Scotland officially the hottest spot in UK

SCOTLAND basked in the hottest temperatures in the UK yesterday as the summer burst back into life.

The mercury soared to 79F (26C) at Strathallan, Perthshire, with forecasters predicting even better weather to come.

If the conditions continue into tomorrow, Scotland will officially record a heat wave, which is when temperatures reach at least 77F (25C) on three consecutive days or more.

Meteorologist Clare Nasir said yesterday: ‘Through the next few days, and into the weekend, high pressure will be in charge, with most of us seeing some brighter weather.

‘The warmest day will be Wednesday and, through the day, we will see some brighter conditions and lovely warm sunshine.

‘In fact, Scotland is likely to see the highest temperatures across the whole of the UK once more.

‘On the western side, we could actually see 27C (80F) and 25C (77F) in the Central Belt. In the far North-East, there will be more in the way of cloud to make it feel more like the high teens.’

Met Office spokesman Sarah Kent said the settled conditions could last for the next week-anda-half, thanks to the high pressure area centred over northern Britain blocking weather systems from bringing in wind and rain.

Miss Kent said: ‘High pressure has become the main player for the country’s weather, certainly into the start of the bank holiday weekend.’ However, with crowds of sunseekers flocking to beaches to cool off, there have been a series of rescues this month.

The incidents have prompted coastguards to issue a warning about the risk of rip currents to unsuspecting swimmers.

Five people, four of whom were under 18, needed hospital treatment after two incidents at Tentsmuir Sands, Fife.

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency said: ‘Rip currents are powerful flows of water that can be hard to spot.

‘They can sweep even the most experienced and strongest of people off their feet and out to deeper water in moments.’

The spokesman added: ‘If you can, always choose a lifeguarded beach and swim between the yellow and red flags.’