IN PICTURES: Europe swelters in 40C “heat dome”
More sweltering temperatures are forecast for southern and eastern parts of England on Tuesday, but the mercury is set to creep even higher around the world.
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The UK is on the edge of a “heat dome” currently sitting over continental Europe which has pushed temperatures to extreme highs.
Heat alerts have been put in place across countries including France, Spain, Portugal, Germany, and Croatia, with temperatures as high as 46C having been recorded in El Granado in Andalucía over the weekend.
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Regional governments in northwestern Liguria and southern Sicily have put restrictions on outdoor work, with a total of 21 cities in Italy under an emergency “red” alert.
in France, 84 regions were under an orange alert on Monday, which France's Climate Minister Agnès Pannier-Runacher calling the heat "unprecedented".
In some areas of Spain, public swimming pools are being made free of charge to help people cope with the extreme heat.
Wildfires and evacuation orders have also been in place in Turkey, with firefighters battling blazes western province of Izmir.
Though temperatures in the many places are forecast to drop as the week goes on, experts have warned that early summer heatwaves are becoming increasingly common and intense.
Dr Ben Clarke, research associate in extreme weather and climate change at the Centre for Environmental Policy at Imperial College London, says that without climate change, the UK would still experience periods of fine, warm weather in June – but the hotter atmosphere means that “fine” weather is now very hot.
“In short, climate change is making ‘nice’ weather more dangerous, and already dangerous weather more deadly,” he warned.
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It comes after the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) extended amber heat health alerts for much of the UK into Wednesday morning.
Monday saw the hottest start to Wimbledon on record, with 32.9C recorded at nearby Kew Gardens, while 33.1C was recorded at Heathrow.