Britain’s prolonged heatwave is expected to continue this week with temperatures expected to reach 33C in parts of the country.
Following a balmy weekend, when temperatures peaked at 29.8C (85.64F) in Gosport, Hampshire, forecasters predict more hot weather until a respite after Wednesday.
Highs of 33C (89.6F) are possible on Tuesday, with south Lincolnshire and north Norfolk expected to be the hottest parts of the country.
England and Wales are forecast to stay generally dry and hot with the exception of possible thunderstorms in the south-east on Tuesday.
Temperatures are unlikely, however, to come close to England’s August record of 38.5C (101.3F) reached in Faversham, Kent, in 2003.
Cloudy conditions are likely in Scotland and Northern Ireland,thick enough at times to bring patchy rain from the west.
Thousands of Britons flocked to the beaches on Saturday and Sunday, with families urged to stay “sun sensible” and take precautions against high UV levels.
Forecaster Dean Hall said there would be “quite a marked change to the feel of things” from the middle of the week as conditions turn “fresher and more changeable”.
It is likely to stay cooler throughout next weekend with “no real sign of any return of the heat that we have been seeing over the recent days”, he said.
Several thousand homes in Nottinghamshire were left without water on Sunday after a mains pipe burst. Severn Trent Water delivered bottled water to vulnerable people in the the village of Epperstone, and said engineers were working to restore the supply.
Holidaymakers in Spain and Portugal are likely to have experienced Europe’s highest temperatures, as air moved north from Africa, bringing heat and dust from the Sahara.
Temperature records were broken in eight areas of Portugal earlier in the week, and holidaymakers were advised to avoid spending time in the sun during the hottest part of the day and to keep hydrated.
Red health alerts for extreme heat were issued for more than half the country as the mercury rose past 46C (114.8F) on Saturday. The hot, dry conditions have also sparked wildfires.
In Spain, heat warnings have been issued for 41 of the country’s 50 provinces, with the top temperature of 46.6C (115.8F) recorded at El Granado in Huelva province.
