Staff ReporterA life threatening heat wave is continuing its march across Western Europe this week.
This week the U.K. will record very high temperatures and a warning has been issued.
For the first time temperatures of as high as 40°C have been forecast in the UK and the Met Office has issued the first ever Red warning for exceptional heat.
Exceptional heat is expected to affect a large part of England this week, with temperatures likely in the high 30s C in some places and perhaps even reaching 40°C.
The Red Extreme heat wave warning for Monday and Tuesday (18th and 19th July) covers parts of central, northern, eastern and south-eastern England. An Amber Extreme heat warning, has been in place for much of England and Wales. Meanwhile, the amber areas are also being extended to cover Cornwall, west Wales and parts of southern Scotland.
The heatwave has also affected parts of Europe.
Spain and Italy baked over the weekend, and wildfires raged in France, prompting the evacuation of more than 14,000 people near Bordeaux since early last week, the local authorities said. France’s national weather forecaster predicted temperatures of at least 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) on the country’s Atlantic coast through tomorrow.
The blistering weather is expected soar to 41 degrees Celsius, which would shatter records. Air-conditioning is rare in the country, where buildings are constructed to retain heat (because cold temperatures have, in the past, been a bigger concern).