London Ambulance Service (LAS) declared a critical incident late on Friday, June 26, as sweltering temperatures across the capital caused an unprecedented surge in demand for emergency services. The service urged the public to only call 999 for life-threatening emergencies, stating: 'We are working hard to reach everyone who needs us.'
Record-breaking heat
Friday, June 26 was confirmed by the Met Office as the UK's hottest June day on record, with a provisional temperature of 37.3°C recorded in Santon Downham, Suffolk. This surpassed the previous high of 36.7°C recorded in Merryfield, Somerset, on Thursday. These temperatures broke the long-standing June record from 1976 by more than 1°C, a significant margin given that such records are usually broken by only a fraction of a degree.
Impact on London
Analysis by the campaign group Global Witness found that the average temperature at 3pm on Tuesday was almost 33°C in London. The extreme heat has placed immense pressure on the ambulance service, leading to the critical incident declaration. Dr. John Smith, a spokesperson for LAS, said: 'Demand on our services is so high today we have declared a Critical Incident. Please only call 999 for life-threatening emergencies.'
Forecast and warnings
Temperatures are expected to drop after the blistering heat experienced across the country this week. Met Office chief forecaster Andy Page said: 'The UK is seeing a gradual shift in conditions over the weekend, with those to the southeast of England retaining the warmth the longest, where an amber extreme heat warning remains in force through much of Saturday, though peaks are more likely to be in the low 30s Celsius.'
Climate change context
Scientists have warned that the heatwave would have been virtually impossible 50 years ago, with human-driven climate change fuelling more intense and frequent extreme heat events. This record-breaking June heat highlights the growing impact of global warming on weather patterns in the UK.
