London could see its third heatwave of the year as temperatures are expected to reach 29C in the capital next week.
Londoners rejoiced earlier this week as summer showers finally brought much-needed relief from the scorching weather following the hottest day of the year on Tuesday.
However, jubilations will be short-lived as the Met Office is now reporting temperatures of 27C on Wednesday and 29C on Thursday. Londoners could also be in for another “tropical night”, with temperatures of around 24C expected through the night next week.
Forecasters at the Met Office said it is still to early to call it a heatwave, which is triggered when a location records at least three consecutive days where the daily maximum temperature meets or exceeds 28C.
The forecaster added: “There is scope for some hot conditions to return to the east and southeast of the UK during the second half of the week and into the weekend.
“Whether or not this would reach heatwave thresholds is still to be determined.”
Temperatures of around 34.7C were recorded at St James’s Park in central London earlier this week, with this year also having been recorded as the hottest start to Wimbledon on record. One spectator at the championships collapsed during Carlos Alcaraz’s first-round victory.
Provisional Met Office figures have also shown that England had its warmest June on record last month, with the UK Health Security Agency having issued amber heat health alerts for much of the country until Wednesday this week.
The London Fire Brigade has also had to respond to 14 wildfires in the city and callouts to smaller fires involving grass and trees in outdoor spaces. The force also issued an alert last week highlighting the risk of such high temperatures and low rainfall, advising members of the public to refrain from using disposable barbeques in public parks and from having bonfires.
A study by the Met Office revealed that the chance of the UK exceeding 40C is now twenty times more likely than it was in the 1960s.
Elsewhere in Europe, countries like France and Spain have also been gripped by a heatwave which has seen temperatures soar over 45C. In Paris, the top of the Eiffel Tower was closed earlier this week, with the city also warning of possible wildfires. In Spain, Barcelona is reporting the hottest June on record
