LONDON – Britain is bracing for temperatures to reach 40 degrees Celsius for the first time on Tuesday, following its warmest night on record, which forced train services to halt, some schools to close, and zoos to feed animals with large ice lollies.
Britain, which can struggle to maintain key transportation services in extreme heat or snow, has declared a “national emergency” as temperatures look set to break the previous record of 38.7 degrees Celsius set in 2019.
According to Transport Minister Grant Shapps, it will be many years before Britain’s infrastructure is fully upgraded to cope with higher temperatures.
“We’ve seen a considerable amount of travel disruption,” he told the BBC. “We’re probably going to see the hottest day ever in the UK recorded today, and infrastructure, much of which was built from the Victorian times, just wasn’t built to withstand this type of temperature.”
Much of Europe has baked in a heatwave for over a week that has sparked wildfires to rage across tinder-dry countryside in Portugal, Spain and France.
In Britain, the heat brought widespread travel problems and requests from train operators for people to only use the service if essential. Network Rail tweeted a picture on Monday showing a rail with a kink near London.
London’s Luton Airport suspended flights after a surface defect was found on the runway, and operations had to be diverted from the Royal Air Force’s Brize Norton, with a media report suggesting the runway had partly melted.
Some rail services – including a key route between northeastern England and London – were cancelled.
The public were also warned not to swim in open water to cool off, with police reporting two teenagers had died after getting into trouble while swimming in a lake and a river.
At least one major zoo, at Chester, said it would close while Bristol Zoo said squirrel monkeys, kea parrots and red pandas were being fed frozen ice lollies filled with vegetables, leaves or mealworms.
In central London, tourists from around the world continued to visit key attracts such as Buckingham Palace and the Tower of London. At Trafalgar Square many stopped to dip their hands, feet and head in the fountain pools.
Reinier van den Heurel, who lives in Bucharest, said he was choosing his route through the capital, based on the sun. “You walk from shadow to shadow, anywhere that you have to stay in the sun for a long time, that’s off limits,” he told Reuters. – Reuters
New Malaysia Herald publishes articles, comments and posts from various contributors. We always welcome new content and write up. If you would like to contribute please contact us at : editor@newmalaysiaherald.com
Facebook Comments
Facebook Comments