London, Thanasis Gavos

The activation of the emergency protocol to deal with severe weather phenomena was ordered by the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, due to the heat that has engulfed England this week.

Already on Monday, the UK Health Protection Agency has put into effect an orange alert for a prolonged high temperature for the season. This heatwave is expected to last until Sunday.

The temperature has been between 30-32 degrees since the start of the week and is forecast to reach 33 degrees on Saturday, making it likely to be the hottest day of 2023 in the UK.

The emergency measures activated by the mayor of London mainly concern the protection of the homeless and are usually used in periods of extreme cold.

They were first activated during a hot season last year in July, when the country’s all-time record of 40 degrees Celsius was recorded.

Local municipalities and aid organizations are now required to provide shelter, water and sun protection to the homeless for as long as the extreme heat lasts.

If the weather forecasts are confirmed and the temperature remains above 30 degrees until Saturday, i.e. for the sixth day in a row, then a new record will be set for the longest period of time in September with such high temperatures in the UK.

In September 1911, five consecutive days with a temperature of 30 degrees Celsius and above were recorded.