Britain experienced its hottest day in May on record on Monday, as temperatures reached 34.8C.
The unseasonably sweltering conditions produced the hottest day of the year for the third day running. Kew Gardens in southwest London has reached 34.8C, exceeding the highest May temperature recorded before the bank holiday by 2C.
Monday’s scorching weather also smashes the record for the hottest bank holiday ever recorded – temperatures have exceeded the 33.3C recorded in August 2019.
“Today will be the hottest day in May in the UK in our temperature records, with highs of 35C expected,” a Met Office spokesperson said.
“Records are usually only broken by tenths of a degree, making this heatwave unprecedented for the time of year.”
Monday’s earlier high of 33.5C was recorded in Heathrow, west London, and exceeded the previous May temperature record of 32.8C, which was recorded in 1944.
Parts of northern England, Wales, the Midlands, east England, and southeast England have all been experiencing weather around 30C on Monday.
Britons have flocked to beaches across the country to soak up the sun over the long weekend.
Amid the weekend heat, South East Water has apologised and handed out bottled water after about 500 of its customers had issues, including outages and low pressure.
A heatwave was officially declared in eight locations in southeast England, which met the threshold of 27C for three consecutive days of hot weather.
A Met Office spokesperson said: “We rarely see temperatures above 35C, even in the summer months, so to see temperatures getting close to 35 in May is, as I say, pretty historic.”
On Sunday, temperatures reached a high of 32.3C at Kew Gardens, in southwest London, while parts of southeast England exceeded 30C. The UK then recorded its warmest night in 81 years.
Tuesday is set to be another scorching day, with a peak of 35C again expected in London and the surrounding counties.
Parts of England and eastern Wales will see temperatures exceed 30C on Tuesday.
A series of amber heat health alerts have been issued for the east Midlands, west Midlands, eastern England, London, and the South East.
Officials warned that the hot weather could cause significant impacts across health and social care services, as well as a rise in deaths, with alerts in place until 5pm on 27 May.
Here’s what the Met Office has forecast over the coming days:
Monday
Temperatures will quickly rise across England and Wales, turning very hot for many with strong sunshine and light winds. Cloudier and fresher across northern Scotland and parts of Northern Ireland with patchy light rain at times.
Monday evening
Staying dry and warm into the evening. Clear skies holding on across England and Wales with a warm night to come. Fresher in Northern Ireland and Scotland with patchy cloud.
Tuesday
Another sunny and mostly dry day across England and Wales as the heatwave continues. A small chance of a few heavy, thundery showers in the afternoon. Fresher in northern Scotland.
Outlook for Wednesday to Friday
Turning fresher in the east with an onshore breeze, but staying very warm elsewhere. Largely dry, although a few showers are possible at times.
