Scotland basks in heatwave as mercury rises towards records

Perth and Kinross enjoys 30C warmth but police warn of danger to pets

The mercury continued to rise yesterday as Scotland came close to breaking temperature records.

Parts of the country came within a whisker of smashing records set 125 years ago.

The hottest part of Courier Country was Perth and Kinross, where the temperature at Strathallan hit 31C, just behind a Scottish peak of 31.9C for Glasgow.

The hottest June day north of the border was 32.2C at Ochtertyre in 1893. The hottest-ever day in Scotland was in 2003, when Greycrook saw a roasting 32.9C.

While it wasn’t quite that hot in Dundee, zookeepers at Camperdown Wildlife Centre still treated their European brown bears to a hefty 80kg ice lolly to help them cool down.

The three bears, Brum, Brumma and Maja, enjoyed the handmade treat.

The concoction contained sugar-free fruit juice layered with watermelon, carrots, apples, grapes, plums and a variety of whole nuts. It was then hung from one of the bears’ climbing poles.

Despite not quite being a recordbreaker, it was hot enough to seemingly melt the roof of Glasgow Science Centre.

As the heat in Scotland’s biggest city climbed higher, a “black goo” began leaking through gaps in the tiles.

Sharon Lyons, the centre’s communications co-ordinator, said: The structural integrity of the roof is completely sound but we are left with a bit of unsightly black goo on the roof.”

And as the heatwave is expected to continue for at least the remainder of the week, Police Scotland has issued a warning about leaving animals in vehicles.

A spokesman said: “Please do not leave your pets in the car, even if only popping to the shops – cars heat up very quickly. The temperatures in a parked car, even in the shade with open windows, can rapidly reach a level high enough to seriously harm or kill your pet.”

The hottest recorded temperature in the UK for the second day in a row was perhaps unsurprisingly further south in the Welsh town of Porthmadog. The coastal town saw highs of 32.6C.

The UK record was set in 2003 when Faversham, Kent, was baking in a heat of 38.5C. smilne@thecourier.co.uk

Pictures: Gareth Jennings and Bradly Yule. Dog days at Forfar loch with Lesley Rollo and Harper the beagle yesterday. Meanwhile, Brumma the brown bear at Camperdown Wildlife Centre in Dundee had an ice lolly.

SWNS. Shannon McClafferty, 17 walks along the Forth Clyde Canal by colourful huts at Helix Park, Falkirk.

Mhairi Edwards. Cousins Johnny Travers, 7, Kathleen Hughes, 4, James Travers, 10 and Sean Hughes, 8, have fun in the sun on the East Sands, St Andrews.

Kim Cessford. Two men took advantage of the weather to play volleyball in Baxter Park, Dundee.