A BBC spokesman said: “It is completely unacceptable for any member of staff to be abused on social media simply for doing their job.” Britain broke the previous record for a high temperature of 38.7C in more than 40 places last week, with a new record of 40.3C set in Coningsby, Lincolnshire. Ahead of the record heat, health authorities warned that two days of very high temperatures with a “tropical night” in between would cause circulatory and respiratory problems, particularly for the elderly and vulnerable, while even healthy people were urged not to exercise in peak temperatures during the day due to the risk of heat exhaustion and heatstroke. In the heat wave of 1976 the maximum temperature was 35.9 C, which was not a record at the time. Temperatures of more than 32C lasted for 15 days and contributed to waterlogging, an increase in emergency hospital admissions and a 20 per cent rise in excess deaths. The 2020 heatwave is believed to have contributed to 2,556 deaths, down from less than 1,000 in recent years and the highest level in 15 years. Excess death statistics for this summer’s heat wave have not yet been released.
