Met Office weather forecasters say temperatures on one day this week could rise as high as 30C as a potential heatwave is on the cards across the UK – it’s time to get the suncream ready!
Temperatures in the UK could soar to an unprecedented 30C one day this week – marking the earliest point in the year such a high has ever been recorded, the Met Office said. After a burst of heat on Tuesday saw parts of England rise close to 25C, the unseasonably warm weather is far from over.
Forecasters say London could sizzle at 27C on Wednesday, but it is Thursday that could break records – with temperatures potentially soaring to a scorching 30C in some areas. Met Office chief meteorologist Paul Gundersen said: “It is not particularly unusual to see warm and sunny periods in April where temperatures reach the mid-20s.
UK weather: Heatwave forecast as Met Office maps show 12 counties will hit 29C
“This has occurred as recently as 2018 and 2019, for example. However, it is more unusual to see temperatures reach the high-20s, and if we see 30C this week, it will be the earliest point in the year in which we have achieved that threshold.” If the mercury does climb that high, it would mark a dramatic milestone in the UK’s weather history.
Nicola Maxey, press officer at the Met Office, said: “As high pressure continues to dominate the UK weather we will see the temperatures building day on day through the week with Thursday seeing the peak of the heat with 29C or even a chance we could see 30C. Friday temperatures will start to dip across much of the UK as the high pressure starts to pull away.”
The UK welcomed its highest recorded April temperature more than 70 years ago in 1949 – when Camden Square, London, rose to a scorching 29.4C.
For May, the highest temperature recorded was 32.8C on May 22 1922, also in Camden Square. And if temperatures continue to rise above 25C this week, there is a possibility the UK could see official heatwave conditions this week.
The Met Office defines a heatwave as three consecutive days of temperatures exceeding the “heatwave threshold”, which varies across the country. The threshold is 25C for most of the UK, with slightly higher numbers for the South and East, and rising to 28C in London.
Mike Childs, head of policy at Friends Of The Earth, warned that heatwaves will become “far more frequent and more intense as climate change takes hold”.
He added: “The UK also needs to go further and faster to cut its emissions. A new climate action plan is due in October, and ministers must seize the enormous opportunities this will bring.
“As well as getting UK climate targets back on track, it will also cut bills, create new jobs, insulate our heat-leaking homes – and put the UK at the forefront of helping to fix our broken planet.”
