Downing Street held today’s Cobra second meeting about the heatwave. Britain will be facing temperatures as high as 39C (102F) starting next Monday. The Government is also planning to implement contingency plans.
Kit Malthouse is Cabinet Office Minister and will preside over the Cobra meeting (Cabinet Office Briefing Rooms), which takes place just three days following the initial crisis meeting.
According to the Prime Minister’s spokesperson, the move is a progression of the significant work that was done in preparation. There are also contingency plans which were enacted or ready to be implemented.
The situation is worsening as rivers are now at 30% of normal levels. Farmers are also using more water, while farmers have used a third less. Britons are being advised to use shorter showers following the worst rainfall for more than 25 years in some parts of the UK.
The drought is causing farmers to warn of the’significant challenges’ they face in keeping their crops hydrated amid rising fuel, electricity, and fertiliser prices.
East Anglia has been particularly dry this summer, with only two-thirds of the usual rainfall recorded in the first six months of 2022. This makes it the region’s most drought-prone period in recent years and also the eleventh since 1836.
Some rivers in the area are drying out – such as the River Waveney which is at only 30 per cent of its normal flow – while millions of households in Yorkshire have been urged to cut water use or face the prospect of a hosepipe ban.
The Waveney’s flow rate has been classified by the Environment Agency as “exceptionally low”, while the River Great Ouse, Ely, Cambridgeshire, and the River Yare, Norfolk, have all been labelled “notably low”.
Yorkshire Water stated that they cannot exclude a ban on hosepipes, and it is asking residents to use a shorter shower time. To reduce the amount of time required to get a good soak, Bon Jovi’s Livin’ On A Prayer can be used.
One farmer on the Norfolk/Suffolk border said he would normally budget £80,000 for electricity to pump water around his crop fields, and this had already gone up to £250,000 this season. But this is now set to increase to £300,000 because of an extra 25 to 30 per cent of water that he is having to pump due to the very dry weather.
The Met Office issued an extreme heat alert yesterday for the majority of England and Wales, which will continue from Sunday to Tuesday. This was in response to chaos fears about transport systems and services such as the NHS.
There will be some relief, however, as today is the first day in a row since July 9, when temperatures are below 30C (86F). Highs between now and Saturday range from 27C (81F to 29C)
The amber alert will then begin at midnight Saturday night. Highs of 31C (88F), forecast for Sunday, are followed by the peak heat of Monday and Tuesday in London.
With the NHS and local councils in mind, officials and ministers were collaborating on plans. Ambulance trusts remain alert. A spokesperson for the Prime Minister stated there were “tried and proven” plans in place in the NHS to increase staffing in those areas.
“This is just a step in ensuring that, as we approach what will be the hottest days of the year, the appropriate mitigations and actions are either in place or are being yet to take place. It is important that people are informed about the options available, particularly for families with children young or those living in vulnerable households.
Workers are eager to get some extra time off. David Davies, owner of Sovereign Beverage Company (Blackburn, Lancashire), gave all his staff Monday off so they could enjoy the heat.
All steam locomotives on the Severn Valley Railway from Kidderminster to Bridgnorth have been suspended until Tuesday, at the latest. The hot and dry climate ‘poses an important risk of fires starting by cinders being escaped from the engines’. Services are instead hauled by heritage-dielectric locomotives.
And a series of summer events from fairs to markets and carnivals to dog shows are being cancelled across the country due to the heat – including a cheese market in Chiswick, West London, and a dog show in Bude, Cornwall.
A school fair in Steeple Bumpstead (Essex); a carnival at Hungerford, Berkshire and an animal sanctuary in Lincolnshire were also cancelled. The cancellations follow a number of school sports days being cancelled this week because it was too hot.
According to the Welsh Government, all event organizers must ‘assess the possibility of postponement of any part or all of their events’. They should also consider if additional communications are possible for participants ‘on safe behavior’ as well as whether shade, water stations or other measures may be required ‘to reduce the most severe effects of extreme heat.
The hottest day in 2022, with 32.7C (99.9F) recorded in London on June 17, is still standing. UK’s record-breaking temperature was 38.7C (101F) in Cambridge, July 15, 2019. The Met Office stated that there are a 20% chance it will break. This is down from the earlier figure of 30%.
This morning, volleyball was played on Bournemouth’s beach in Dorset.
A two-year-old Hungarian Vizsla dog called Jasmine runs through the River Itchen near Riverside Park in Southampton today
A large ship floats alongside the River Avon, and under the Clifton Suspension Bridge in Bristol.
A ship approaching the lock of Cumberland Basin at Bristol’s River Avon today, ahead of the weekend harbor festival
Today’s West Country weather is fine so a hot air balloon flew over Cumberland Basin, City of Bristol.
Canoe Polo is played by people in their kayaks in the waters of Cumberland Basin, Bristol.
A large ship is seen approaching a lock at Cumberland Basin, Bristol, today in advance of this weekend’s harbour festival
Canoe Polo is played by people in their kayaks in the waters of Cumberland Basin, Bristol.
A large ship floats alongside the River Avon, and under the Clifton Suspension Bridge in Bristol.
Early this morning, the Buck Supermoon complete sets in front of St Michael’s Tower at Glastonbury Tor, Somerset.
Andrew Blenkiron, director of the Euston Estate near Thetford and chairman of the National Farmers Union in Suffolk, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme this morning: ‘We grow winter cereals here – so that’s wheat and barley, we grow sugar beet for a British Sugar factory just down at Bury St Edmonds.
‘And we grow about 1,200 acres of irrigated root crops – so that’s parsnips, potatoes, carrots and onions, and that’s where our significant challenge has arisen at the moment to try and keep those crops fully watered to ensure that they meet market specifications and indeed generate a yield.
“We began irrigating the crops in this area very early this season, at the beginning of April.
“But in the last two weeks, evapotranspiration has been so high that it seems like water is just about to pour through the crop plants,”
According to him, there were three major cost increases: the doubled fuel cost for tractors to plant and harvest crops and take care of them; tripling fertiliser cost; and the tripling electricity costs associated with moving all that water.
As for electricity costs, Mr Blenkiron said: ‘A usual season we budget about £80,000 for that. This season I’ve had to budget £250,000 – that three-fold increase.
‘But because of this extra 25 to 30 per cent water that we’re having to pump round at the moment, that electric bill is going to run to well over £300,000 which is the challenge that’s occupying my mind.’
He added that supermarkets are ‘not that enthusiastic to increase their prices’, particularly for the root crops – and the contracts for those were agreed before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the recent surge in gas prices.
Blenkiron stated that he hopes farmers will have the ability to raise prices when autumn contracts are renegotiated. He added: “What’s the future if there isn’t some reasonable strong price increases? People won’t be planting those crops next year.”
‘They’ll turn to another crop, a winter cereal or something like that – so considerably less investment per acre and considerably less risk.’
Water bosses advised customers to take shorter showers, and not leave the taps on.
Yorkshire is experiencing the worst water shortages. Five million Yorkshire residents have received urgent advice on cutting down their water consumption.
Yorkshire Water’s Neil Dewis stated that the reservoirs have been reduced to levels not seen since 1995, when hundreds of tankers brought supplies to the region.
Restrictions like a ban on hosepipes cannot be excluded, but he described them as “just one tool” that the company can use.
Londoners were also advised to use less Thames Water. Tips included shorter showers and the use of watering cans rather than hosepipes. This will help keep your gardens green.
Andrew Tucker, the demand reduction manager at the company, stated that while we don’t expect to place restrictions on water usage this summer, it is important for households to be responsible about their consumption and to help reduce pressure on resources.
While there has been no ban on the use of hosepipes by householders in England and Wales for over ten decades, South East Water did advise customers not to do so during a heatwave.
Lee Dance, however, was yesterday the Head of Water Resources. He insisted that both groundwater and reservoir water stores were healthy.
He said that domestic water usage was 50 percent higher than usual during this hot spell and urged people to “play their part in conserving water for everyone”
For the fourth straight day temperatures surpassed 30C (86F) and reached their highest point at 30.1C (86.2F), Gosport in Hampshire.
This prolonged heat spell saw highs of 31.7C (98.1F) in Surrey Tuesday, 32C (90F), in London Monday and 30.1C (86.2F) Sunday. 27.5C (81.5F last Saturday. 29.3C (84.7F Friday).
The heat continued to cause wildlife to become sluggish. There were reports that chicks dropped to the ground quickly, and donkeys in Devon received grass frozen in blocks.
From Sunday, sleep will be hard again with several ‘tropical night’ when temperatures do not drop below 20C (68F).
In parts of England, Monday night and Tuesday evening fell in this category.
Annie Shuttleworth, Met Office meteorologist, stated that she was expecting a long spell of very hot weather.
“Wherever we have the extreme heat warning it is likely to be hot at night which can cause trouble sleeping.
“It doesn’t appear like it will only be one night. It’s the cumulative effects of several uncomfortable nights in row which nobody will enjoy.
Unions asked firms to permit staff to leave early or work remotely to reduce heat at the desks and on commutes, prompting criticisms of “Snowflake Britain”.
Both the UK Health Security Agency and The Met Office have issued “danger to live” alerts ahead of expected soaring temperatures.
Sadiq Khan, the London mayor, activated a severe weather emergency response normally activated in winter when temperatures drop to freezing to support people who are sleeping rough.
Ministers and officials have begun to work with councils and the NHS in order to protect against heatwave. Ambulance trusts are already on alert.
The minister for health stated that the ambulance service is facing “the kind of pressures we would expect to see in winter” and that the government was preparing all NHS trusts for the heatwave.
Due to heatwave in the UK, events such as dog sanctuary visits and brewery open days are being cancelled
Maria Caulfield (Health Minister) told Parliament yesterday that the situation was “extremely worrying” for the future. She said she’d be meeting all 11 ambulance trusts to assess their resilience over the following days.
Answering an urgent question from Labour about ambulance services and the declaration of a national heatwave emergency, she added: ‘In terms of urgency, we have procured a contract for an auxiliary ambulance service with a total value of £30million which will provide national surge capacity if needed to support the ambulance response during periods of increased pressure. That is it.
Wes Streeting, shadow healthy secretary, said that extreme weather is placing further pressure on emergency services. However, 12 years of Conservative underfunding has made them incapable to cope.
Ms Caulfield replied to Steve McCabe, Labour’s Labour leader, about the ‘terrible’ situation.
“These are pressures that we would expect in winter, and they’re here in summer. It’s very concerning as we head into winter.
Labour’s Naz Shah noted: ’24 hours in A&E used to be a (reality) TV programme, now it’s Government policy.’
Ms Caulfield explained that she will meet with all eleven ambulance trusts to assess their resilience, and not just for dealing with the current stresses, but also to be prepared for the winter ones that are certain to come.
She stated that she had published a heatwave strategy for England earlier in the year and added: “We are making certain all NHS trusts have prepared.”
Residents on Sheppey Island in Kent can now expect to see their water supply return after burst pipes caused thousands of people without water for the hottest week of the year.
Aerial view taken yesterday of Lindley Wood Reservoir’s drying-out bed and receding water levels in Otley West Yorkshire
The Carew River runs parallel to Carew Castle in Pembrokeshire West Wales. Low water levels can be seen Tuesday
Yesterday’s aerial view of Scammonden Water in low level, which supplies Huddersfield (West Yorkshire)
This is an aerial view from Tuesday showing what remains of the crops which were set on fire Monday, during the Ripon Fire in North Yorkshire.
A map by Environment Agency showing the river levels in East Anglia for June – the Waveney is at only 30% of its normal level
On Tuesday, two main pipes connecting the island to Kent coastline burst. This affected 24,000 houses and 12 schools. Southern Water established bottled water points, and tankers were sent in to Sheppey Community Hospital.
Southern Water made a statement this morning stating that supply would resume by noon. Residents were however warned to be prepared for low pressure and cloudy waters. The bottled water stations remain open today.
One spokesperson said that they were happy to announce that water supplies should be returning to customers in Sheppey. This may take place slowly depending on the location of your reservoir and where it is located.
“Demand is clearly extremely high, so customers will continue seeing low pressure once the situation returns back to normal. After a disruption in supply, discolored water is common.
This effect is temporary and usually disappears when the network settles. To see if the water clears, you can place it in a cup for a while. As the pipes are refilled, this will indicate that there is air in the water.
If the water is brownish or black, turn off your faucet for a few minutes. The water should then clear. Turn the tap off and wait for 20 minutes before trying again. If your water has run clear it is fine to keep your water piping as usual.
If your tap water becomes brown or black, you should not run hot water taps. Flush the toilet.
“Sometimes airlocks can develop in pipes after the network has been empty. If this happens, running water taps for a brief time can aid with the flow of water.