Hot weather with highs of 24C brings with it wildfire warnings, with fire services expected to battle blazes across the UK as Britain sees its warmest day of the year.
Temperatures are predicted to peak on Friday in London and south-east England, the Met Office has said.
“High pressure currently remains in charge of the UK’s weather, bringing plenty of sunshine and above average temperatures for the time of year,” the weather office said.
According to Dan Stroud, a forecaster at the Met Office, Friday will be about 10C above average for this time of year.
The hot weather is being delivered by high pressure which at this time of year boosts temperatures under clear, sunny skies
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“We’ve got high pressure at the moment which effectively acts like a force field”, he said.
“It actually keeps fronts and clouds largely at bay and keeps conditions settled and dry underneath the area of high pressure.”
However, the London Fire Brigade (LFB) has urged Britons to be cautious and advised against using barbecues, with “heightened” risks thanks to low rainfall.
Fire and rescue services are dealing with a record year of wildfires, with a total of 286 incidents being recorded by National Resilience data between January 1 and April 4.
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The charred remains of gorse fires which came dangerously close to a family home on the Newtown Road in the Mourne Mountains last weekend
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This is over 100 more than the same period in 2022, which marked a record year for wildfire incidents.
Just this week, firefighters are tackling major blazes in Northern Ireland, whilst in Scotland, the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service issued “extreme” wildfire alerts
LFB assistant commissioner Thomas Goodall said: “The risk of wildfires in London currently is heightened and this risk increases with every day that passes without rainfall.
“A minority of the fires we’ve attended recently are believed to have been started deliberately. What might seem like harmless fun has the ability to turn into something much more serious, particularly given current weather conditions.”
Smoke and flames on Slieve Donard in the Mourne Mountains
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The brigade experienced a 48 per cent increase in call-outs last weekend compared with the same weekend last year.
Last weekend, the National Fire Chiefs Council warned it needed “long-term and sustained investment” to cope with the climate crisis and “increased demand” on its services.
Tomorrow is set to be the hottest day of the year so far, besting April 4 a week earlier, which saw highs of 23.7C in Otterbourne, Hampshire.
