London: As a heat wave continues to bake the European continent, the UK issued its first ever “Red warning for exceptional heat.”
Climate attribution scientist at the Met Office Dr. Nikos Christidis said “We hoped we wouldn’t get to this situation but for the first time ever we are forecasting greater than 40°C in the UK
“In a recent study we found that the likelihood of extremely hot days in the UK has been increasing and will continue to do so during the course of the century, with the most extreme temperatures expected to be observed in the southeast of England” he said.
Met Office on Friday said that it was issuing the alert because temperatures were forecast to hit and perhaps overtake 40 degrees Celsius Monday and Tuesday.
However, forecasters have warned that parts of the country could reach 41 degrees Celsius on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Western France is facing a “heat apocalypse”, experts have warned, as extreme temperatures continue to hit much of Europ
Wildfires in France in recent days have forced over 24,000 people to flee, with emergency shelters set up for evacuees.
In Spain and Portugal, more than 1,000 deaths have been attributed to the heat in recent days.
Temperatures could reach record levels in 15 regions of the southwest, with firefighters battling wildfires and thousands forced to evacuate. Blazes in Spain, Portugal and Greece have forced thousands
Climate scientists say life-threatening heatwaves are more intense, more frequent and longer because of climate change and coupled with droughts have made wildfires harder to fight.
