Record temperatures cause power cuts and melt runways… and it’ll be even hotter tomorrow
Flights at two airports were halted over melting runways and a section of railway in London buckled today as the heatwave continued to roast the UK, while previous record high temperatures were broken in Wales. Temperatures in Hawarden in Flintshire, north-east Wales, reached 37.1?C on Monday, which is provisionally the highest ever seen in the country. It shatters the previous Welsh record of 35.2?C recorded at the same location in August 1990.
It comes as farmers at the Royal Welsh Show near Builth Wells in Powys resorted to slathering pigs in sun tan lotion as they sought to care for the around 8,000 animals in attendance, according to the BBC. In England, the highest recorded temperature was 38.1?C in Santon Downham, Suffolk, according to the Met Office, marking the fourth-hottest day on record and easily the hottest day of the year so far.
A police officer offers a bottle of water to a police horse named Zack during hot weather, on Whitehall in London (Photo: Reuters)
The Met Office says there is a “95 per cent chance” that England will also see its hottest day on record this week, with the high of 38.7?C recorded in Cambridge in 2019 highly likely to be shattered on Tuesday. Temperatures could climb as high as 41?C in the South, the Met Office has warned, the first time temperatures have ever exceeded 40?C. Some schools in several counties – including Nottinghamshire, Buckinghamshire and Hampshire – were closed, while others cancelled sports days and detentions, and relaxed uniform codes.
“Melting” runways led to flights being cancelled at London Luton Airport and RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, the country’s largest RAF airbase. Flights at other airports including Heathrow continued as normal, however. Train companies across England and Wales reported severe delays and cancelled services as Network Rail imposed temporary speed restrictions to limit the risk of damage to the track, which can buckle in high temperatures.
Trains were limited to 60mph in the West Midlands, while LNER said trains between London and the North East will not run at all on Tuesday due to the potential hazards. Network Rail deployed teams to apply heat-protective paint to rails in the worst-hit areas, with at least one “kink in the rail” reported at Vauxhall in south London – where the metal had heated up to more than 48?C.
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i ? One of the ways the heat can affect our railway.
A kink in the tracks was spotted near #Vauxhall earlier today. Our team are working to fix this, and thankfully trains can be re-routed to avoid the affected section, so delays should be minor. ???? https://t.co/WO3WHQxeJd pic.twitter.com/iELaqPdRXN
— Network Rail Wessex (@NetworkRailWssx) July 18, 2022
A spokesperson said: “Our team are working to fix this, and thankfully trains can be re-routed to avoid the affected section.” Network Rail explained: “When steel gets hot it expands.
The rails become longer and start pushing against the pieces of track next to them. “This can damage the equipment that detects where trains are keeping them a safe distance apart. “When this happens, we stop trains to keep everyone safe.
If there is no room for the rail to expand, the rail can buckle and we need to close the line to fix it before trains can run again. When we stop trains or close a line, this causes delays.” Road traffic appeared to still be moving freely on Monday afternoon, though gritter trucks had been put on standby across the country to help avert damage to softening road surfaces if the tarmac starts to melt.
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People have also been warned to expect some sweaty nights ahead, with what is likely to be the warmest night on record in the UK expected into Tuesday.
Met Office meteorologist Luke Miall said: “For a good part of eastern Wales, and England and southern Scotland, we’re looking at the 30s if not the high 30s.” He said: “I’ve been a qualified meteorologist for 10 years, and telling people about 41?C in the UK doesn’t seem real. “It’s crazy how we are talking about these sorts of values, I’ve never seen the models coming up with these values.
“It’s been quite an eye-opener to climate change with all these temperatures in the UK.” Climate change, which has pushed up global temperatures by 1.2?C on pre-industrial levels, is making heatwaves longer, more intense and more likely. Power cuts were reported in some parts of the country, leaving people unable to switch their fans on, though UK Power Networks said their systems were “currently operating normally.”
A notice to power stations was issued on Monday afternoon to remind them they must ensure they have enough megawatts available for an expected surge in electricity demand this evening.
National Grid ESO, which covers England, Scotland and Wales, said: “This was due to a combination of factors including high exports, low wind, planned plant maintenance outages, higher than usual demand and a small reduction in gas generation.”
It later cancelled the notice, adding: “Based on current assessments and submitted data the ESO is confident that electricity margins are sufficient.”