Extraordinary heat-health alerts came into force at 09:00 BST on Friday across parts of the UK as forecasters warned that bank holiday Monday could bring the hottest May day on record. The yellow alerts cover the Midlands, eastern England and south-east England and run until 17:00 Wednesday.
Temperatures are forecast to approach 33C in south-east England on Monday, close to the current May high of 32.8C set in 1944. For many parts of England and Wales, the weekend will turn warm first, with temperatures rising into the mid to high twenties, and some places in the south Midlands and south-east England could hit 30C by Sunday.
The warning has been issued because the heat is expected to last long enough to push many areas into official heatwave thresholds over the next few days. The UK Health Security Agency normally issues heat-health alerts during its core season from 1 June to 30 September, but it moved early this year because of the unusually warm spell.
A yellow alert means there could be some minor impacts to health and social care services, and the UKHSA said the purpose is to help those services prepare for hotter weather and reduce harm from extended heat. Dr Anya Gopfert said sustained periods of warm weather can pose a real risk to the most vulnerable, adding that the first heat-health alert of the summer season should be treated as an important reminder of that danger.
The forecast also brings another issue: high UV levels. With plenty of sunshine expected, many people will face strong sun through the weekend and into next week, when temperatures are set to stay in the high twenties and low thirties across wide areas. The agency’s advice is simple: drink enough water, stay out of the sun during the hottest part of the day and keep homes cool.
That is why Friday’s alert matters now, not later in the summer. The weather is arriving early, the warmth is expected to build quickly, and the health warning is designed to give services and households a head start before the hottest stretch lands on bank holiday Monday.
