London : The UK broke an unwelcome record on Tuesday when Surrey in south-east England hit the highest temperature ever since records began at 39 degrees Celsius. The previous record was 38.7C set in 2019 at Cambridge Botanic Garden in eastern England. The Meteorological (Met) Office said the reading was provisional as the temperatures are expected to soar further with other regions reporting their readings at different times of the day.
The country was braced for “unprecedented” temperatures on Tuesday after the ongoing heat wave resulted in the hottest night on record at 26 degrees Celsius in parts of London overnight on Monday. The Met Office red warning of danger to life from extreme heat remains in place for much of central, northern, and south-east England, including the capital city. At least five people are believed to have drowned after attempting to escape the heat in rivers and lakes.