Correspondent Neil Connery heard from a Londoner who escaped a fire believed to have started on dry ground Britain is bracing for another heatwave that will last longer than July’s record, with highs of up to 35C expected next week, forecasters said. Temperatures over the next few days will remain cooler than last month’s 40.3C, but the heat will continue for a “prolonged period”, the Met Office said. The Met Office Fire Severity Index (FSI), an estimate of how serious a fire could become if one started, is very high for most of England and Wales and will rise to ‘excellent’ for one area of England until the weekend. People have been urged not to host barbecues or use fireplaces – small outdoor stoves used for cooking and heating – in dry conditions. The warning comes after a fire, caused by a hymena, affected 15 gardens in Essex. Essex Fire and Rescue Service said around 40 people were forced to leave properties and more than a dozen homes were damaged on Saturday. Area manager Neil Fenwick said: “While the summer weather usually provides the perfect opportunity to have a barbecue or gather around a chiminea in the evening, we strongly discourage people from having any kind of fire at this time.” The fire at Greenwood Close in Chelmsford destroyed 15 gardens. Credit: Essex Fire and Rescue Service The fire service also warned against setting off fireworks or sky lanterns, which could spark a “large-scale” fire in parched areas. In Truro, Cornwall, more than 40 firefighters battled a large fire burning through dry grassland on Saturday. Nearby, in Devon and Somerset, firefighters called for a ban on disposable barbecues. They revealed that the kitchens had “triggered multiple messages” in a 24-hour period. Weather anchor Becky Mantin explains what’s behind the current extended hot spell On Thursday, the recent warm weather sparked a 100-foot barn fire in Wales. The whole of England and Wales is likely to see such weather conditions continue into next week as high pressure builds across the UK. Parts of NW Scotland may be cloudier and breezy until Wednesday, but good weather is expected for all parts of the country later in the week. Emergency services received 36 calls to reports of a fire in Truro on Saturday. Credit: Julian Perreira Scorched earth left by a disposable barbecue in Greenwich Park, south London Credit: Yui Mok/PA It comes after Sunday brought wall-to-wall sunshine across most of Britain, with a high of 28.1C recorded in Frittenden, Kent. Meteorologist Tom Morgan of the Met Office said: “There will be plenty of sunshine for the vast majority of the UK and temperatures will also rise day by day. “Not everyone will see these sunny conditions initially, but towards the end of the week even Scotland and Northern Ireland will join the rest of the UK in generally good, sunny and very warm, if not hot, conditions. “It looks like a prolonged period of dry weather and obviously that’s bad news for the south of England where some rain would really help now. “In terms of temperatures, we’re looking at them rising from 28C or 29C tomorrow to the low to mid-20s from Thursday onwards, so a fairly widespread heat wave is developing across the UK Kingdom this week. “The peak temperatures look likely to occur on Friday or Saturday.” Mr Morgan said the West Midlands and West Country could see the hottest temperatures, with a maximum forecast temperature of around 35C, but added that this was still uncertain. He added: “The heat wave that we saw at the end of July was relatively short-lived and saw extremely high, extremely high temperatures that broke records. “We’re pretty confident that the temperatures won’t go as high as July, but the difference is that this will be quite a prolonged period of temperatures in the low 30s, so it will still be very noticeable. “Heat criteria are likely to be met in many parts of the UK and there will undoubtedly be some adverse effects from heat exhaustion, dehydration etc. related problems during this period”. The Met Office urged people to take precautions to avoid overheating, including keeping curtains and windows closed during the day and avoiding the midday sun. It comes after the environment minister urged more water companies to enforce pipe bans during an unusually dry August. George Eustice said some companies had already taken the “right” steps to mitigate the effects of the prolonged dry weather, as he encouraged others to follow suit. His remarks, the first public intervention by ministers, signal possible restrictions on watering gardens, washing cars or filling swimming pools with tires for millions more people across southern England in the coming days. Southern Water has already imposed a pipe ban for customers in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, followed exactly a week later for South East Water customers in Kent and Sussex. Welsh Water also announced a ban for Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire later this month. Want a quick and special update on the biggest news? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out what you need to know…
