Met office RED WARNING for extreme heat.

[OhYouBadBadKitten]

General discussion is www.mumsnet.com/talk/weather/4583720-we-need-to-talk-about-the-weather-and-the-potential-for-extreme-heat but I wanted this to be seen by as many people as possible.
www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/warnings-and-advice/uk-warnings#?date=2022-07-18

Good idea, will try this.

Will people stop saying this!

I've been to Cyprus multiple times. I have yet to stay in an apartment that didn't have air con, work stopped in the hottest part of the day and all restaurants had fans or air con or frequently both. Even when we stayed in an apartment in Greece with no air con the building was built to stay as cool as possible and was surrounded by trees and shade.

It is not comparable to how we are set up in the UK.

I lived in The ME where you have to be covered from head to toe in 40°+ heat and honestly that was more bearable than being half dressed in 30° degree heat in this country.

humid heat is completely different to dry heat, esp when our houses aren’t built for this kind of weather

hope everyone keeps safe out there in this heat!

Not everyone has the luxury to wfh.
Personally I am very glad to be able to go into the office, it's so much cooler there than at home (no air con, its just on the shady side of a not very well insulated building). I wfh early this week and it was so hot I felt quite ill by the mid afternoon. Wfh is definitely not a luxury for me!

I caught a train last night and they announced Monday and Tuesday will be reduced service and only travel if really necessary

Thanks @OhYouBadBadKitten
I’m just drafting an email to all staff encouraging wfh only coming into the air conditioned office if they can get in not using public transport. Can anyone link to official advice saying that, I can only find vague ‘travel might be disrupted’

I really do wish people would calm down on this @OhYouBadBadKitten

It's not going to be a pleasant couple of days but many people do go on holiday (willingly) to countries that have these temps. I certainly sunned myself in 35C years ago when I was young and silly.

You could argue that our homes are not built for extreme temps, but it's only for a couple of days.

TBH most of the people who do suffer are elderly, have pre existing health issues, or think it's a good idea to jump off bridges into rivers, or sun themselves on beaches.

Haven't heard about ours yet. We're just south of the red zone, but the trip is to the NH museum in London. Coaches probably have aircon and the museum will likely be cool, so they may actually be better off... But the risks of no aircon/breakdown and delays do worry me.

A good tip is to fill a hot water bottle, then freeze it. When it’s time for bed, take it with you wrapped in a towel.
I also put make up remover wipes in the fridge or freezer, very refreshing for pressing against hot faces and back of necks etc

You could try this document. assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1074023/Heatwave_Plan_for_Engand_2022_May-2022-v2.pdf p35 might help.

What you need really is for the official network rail advice to come out.

or this.
www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/warnings-and-advice/uk-warnings#?date=2022-07-18

Strangely I just logged onto Thames Water as need to contact them .

There is a banner in red at the Top stating .

SE3 (Blackheath), SE9 (Eltham) and SE12 (Lee) Have No Water or Low Pressure .

We have been waiting for months for an important hospital appointment for dh , it's on Monday and over 250 mile round trip . It's going to be hotter than hell 👹👹👹

FfS , when we go on holiday we have aircon, pools and beaches.

After being ill in Turkey I no longer go anywhere either average summer temps above 34.

And Welsh people, and southern Scots

Only England has the RED warning, but all of Britain (up to just short of the Tay) has the amber, and I don't think it's going to be easy in any part with either warning.

@JinglingHellsBells

It's not going to be a pleasant couple of days but many people do go on holiday (willingly) to countries that have these temps. I certainly sunned myself in 35C years ago when I was young and silly.

The key word being holiday. Where you don't have to work, commute, wear particular clothing, can do as you please, and often have frequent access to the pool or the ocean. It is not comparable to living and working in a city.

You could argue that our homes are not built for extreme temps

There is nothing to argue. Our homes are, in the main, not built for extreme temperatures, in the same way they're not built for earthquakes or deep snow.

but it's only for a couple of days.

Exhaustion and heatstroke sets in much quicker than that.

TBH most of the people who do suffer are elderly, have pre existing health issues, or think it's a good idea to jump off bridges into rivers, or sun themselves on beaches.

That doesn't make their suffering less valid or important.

If you do this though make sure you never use that hot water bottle for hot water again! Freezing compromises the bottle and if you fill it with a kettle at a later date you risk the bottle splitting and scalding you.

Red alert means risk to life INCLUDING those not normally vulnerable.

I've opted (work gave us the option) to WFH. Our office doesn't have air con, it's pretty unbearable. My commute involves bus, tube and train, none of which have air con. It was bad enough at the beginning of this week, trains very delayed/cancelled. My house is quite cool (I don't have south facing anything, on purpose, as I hate feeling hot!) so I should be okay. I have the option of misting myself down and lying under a fan at least, if I'm at home.

I've collapsed with heat exhaustion several times in the past, my health is more important.

We had a phone/internet outage yesterday for a few hours - something to do with heat and a junction box failure.

All sorts of things could go wrong, hopefully only briefly, but it could all get a bit bumpy.

The dash to use aircon is going to be All Right Jack, but actually worsens the situation (disproportionate emissions and the fuelling of climate change)

twitter.com/metofficece/status/1547894053869563906
This is worth watching.

I actually think this heatwave could be a good thing if it makes people take climate change more seriously. This is only going to get more frequent and extreme over the coming years and decades so everyone is going to have to get used to it unfortunately!

I think the issuing of a red warning was almost inevitable, fair enough for all the reasons OYBBK came up with/

The much bigger problem IMHO is the way some of those who are employed to present the weather (I chose my words carefully there) have chosen, or have been told, to do so.

@Namechangenoidea You're not the only one wondering why the panic, the demand for Something To Be Done, the expectation that everything will be closed down. Covid has a lot to answer for when people seem to be left in a state of catastrophising over everything.

No the UK isn't set up for heat, but the idea that every hot country is full of wonderfully cool air-conned buildings is laughable. How many air con units do you think there are in an Indian slum when it's 45 degrees?

And, if I remember correctly, the Met Office warning system is a fairly new thing so the "FIRST RED WARNING" stuff is because it simply wasn't around before. You know, when it hit 42 degrees a few years ago.

Yes, it needs to be managed - which people can do themselves instead of running round like headless chickens - but it's not a national disaster.

When did it hit 42 degrees? Pray tell.