Red heat warning for England as temperatures near 39C

Temperatures neared 39C across six English regions on Friday as a red heat-health alert remained in force. The greatest health risk came before cooler air began to move in from the west. The hottest period had already peaked on Wednesday and Thursday, but very warm weather was still expected to linger in the east and south-east through Saturday.

The UK Health Security Agency extended the red alert until 11pm on Friday 26 June for the South East, South West, London, East of England, West Midlands and East Midlands. Elsewhere in England, amber alerts were in place for the same period. This was only the second time a red heat-health alert had been issued, after July 2022, and the warning signalled a risk to life even for healthy people, with potential disruption to transport, food, water, energy and business services.

Temperatures in parts of England and Wales were expected to reach at least 39C, putting the country on course to challenge the existing UK June daily air temperature record of 35.6C. That record was set on 28 June 1976 and matched on 29 June 1957. Humidity made the spell more hazardous, with dew points forecast around 22C in some places and tropical nights expected, meaning overnight temperatures may not fall below 20C.

The heat-health alert system runs each year from 1 June to 30 September. Cooler conditions may begin to establish from the west after the hottest weather passes, although the east and south-eastern parts of England were still expected to stay very warm into the weekend.

In Sheffield, temperatures were forecast to stay widely above 30C, with the hottest areas potentially reaching 38C to 40C inside the embedded red warning. Cooler conditions may begin to build from the west after that period, but South Yorkshire was set for another day of intense heat.