ANOTHER BLOOMING GLORIOUS WEEK!
Scotland hotter than south of France as heatwave continues
SCOTLAND’S scorching temperatures put the French Riviera in the shade this weekend and will continue for at least another week.
A high of 75F (24C) in Glasgow yesterday topped Nice in the south of France, which only managed 73F (23C).
As the mercury rose, Helena Reinardy, from Oban, Argyll, took the plunge at the River Fillan near Crianlarich, Perthshire, in an attempt to cool off.
In Troon, Ayrshire, eight-year-old Ella Williamson beat the heat by donning sunglasses to pick giant daisies. Meanwhile, ice-cream was on the menu at Glasgow’s Kelvingrove Park for sisters Antonella, seven, and Theodora Ferrari, four.
Runners in St Andrews took on a 5km race in the sweltering conditions to raise money for the RNLI and other charities. The event took them along the stretch of West Sands where the running scene from Chariots of Fire was filmed.
With an area of high pressure remaining dominant, the fine weather is set to continue. Met Office meteorologist Greg Dewhurst said: ‘It will feel pretty similar over the next few days. The area of high pressure to the North-West of Scotland is giving lots of settled weather.
‘In the North and Eastern parts of the country it is feeling a bit cooler due to some cloud cover. But there is plenty of sunshine still around with highs of around 23C [73F], possibly edging up a degree more in the West. Temperatures there are around 5C above the average for the time of year.’
With the warm weather forecast to last into this weekend, fears over the impact on water levels are growing.
Last week Scottish Water urged the public to take shorter showers and shun hosepipes amid below average reservoir levels.
Most of Scotland was at the early warning stage for water scarcity at the last update by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency. Environmental bosses predicted
the situation could escalate quickly due to the spate of dry weather. But there could be some relief by Monday next week, when an area of hot and humid air could bring some much-needed moisture.
Mr Dewhurst said: ‘There is a slight chance that by next weekend the area of high pressure could move away and bring a risk of showers. Farmers and growers might welcome this but it’s just looking like it could be showers and temperatures should remain warm.’
A spokesman for Scottish Water said: ‘The advice we issued last week still stands. We are reiterating our calls for people to save water where possible.’
Despite the good weather, there is no indication temperatures will rise significantly beyond the highs already seen.
Mr Dewhurst said: ‘We have a cool northeasterly breeze and cloud rolling in overnight which lifts in the daytime. It sort of resets the system every day, so temperatures are not building in the way we might typically see after a run of warm weather.’