In front of the record temperatures recorded in the country, leading the British weather office to publish a “red alert”, the government multiplies calls for vigilance and strengthens emergency services.
by
England is also experiencing an unprecedented heat wave: temperatures could reach 40 degrees Celsius in the south of the country and the midlands on Monday July 18 and Tuesday, July 19, and break the absolute record of 38.7 ° C Recorded on July 25, 2019 at the Cambridge Botanical Garden. The National Meteorological Office, the Met Office, has for the first time published a “red alert” in the heat wave in recent days, meaning a danger to people’s lives – including those in good health. The government has held several crisis meetings (called “cobra”) decreeing a “national emergency” and also calling the population to the greatest vigilance.
Meteorology is a very serious affair in the United Kingdom, but so far, heat waves were celebrated as too rare moments, which had to be made up to the beaches, ice cream and cream as much as possible solar. The authorities have communicated very differently in recent days, multiplying messages of prudence and practical recommendations. The health security agency thus advises “to close the curtains of the parts exposed to the sun”, “drink a lot and avoid alcohol”, to “slow down the rhythm of activity” during the hottest hours, or to ” Pay attention to the others, especially to the elderly and young people, very young and those who already have health problems “.
on Twitter , the chief medical advisor for England, Chris Whitty, who became a familiar figure during the pandemic, also asks his fellow citizens to “watch out for the courses before the heat stroke, especially for the oldest and the sick. Quick intervention to lower their body temperature and rehydrate can save lives. “Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, press the inhabitants to limit their trips as much as possible on Monday and Tuesday and warns that public transport could be disturbed, because speed limitations could intervene to limit heating of rails and wagons. The British capital is one of the greenest in Europe, with many parks even in the city center and its Lidos (“pools”) outdoors and water bodies have been taken by storm in recent days. But as elsewhere in the country, the dwellings are notoriously ill -isolated – cold as well as heat.
put the climate urgency at the heart of the debate
The rest of the country could also record heat records, with perhaps 29 ° C in Northern Ireland, while the temperature rarely exceeds 25 ° C in summer, and 30 ° C in Glasgow, in Scotland . Reaching or exceeding 40 ° C would represent a “historic moment” and “a potentially very serious situation, which shows how a reality is a reality,” said Grahame Madge, the spokesperson for the British Meteorology Office . His colleague, the scientist Nikos Christidis, said on the site of the Met Office that the frequency of scorching episodes in the United Kingdom will continue to increase throughout the century with the most extreme temperatures observed in the southeast of countries .
You have 39.84% of this article to read. The continuation is reserved for subscribers.