Parts of England to hit 30 degrees as fire crews tackle major blaze
LONDON (PA Media/dpa)Parts of England will swelter through temperatures of up to 30 degrees Celsius on Friday as firefighters grapple with a lack of resources amid the heatwave.The Met Office forecast patchy cloud across the north with some light rain and the odd shower in Scotland.Despite this, temperatures will remain warm, particularly across England and Wales.In London, highs of 30 degrees are predicted, while Cardiff will only be slightly cooler at 29 degrees.Further north, Belfast and Edinburgh are expected to be a little milder, with temperatures reaching 22 degrees and 24 degrees respectively.As the heat concentrates across southern and south-western England, temperatures will climb to 30 degrees in Salisbury and 29 degrees in Cambridge, while central areas like Nottingham are also expected to see highs of 28 degrees.It comes as firefighters travelled across the UK to help tackle the major wildfire at Holt Heath, Dorset, fuelling calls for increased firefighting resources.Ben Selby, Fire Brigades Union assistant general secretary, said services had undergone "14 years of austerity.""The loss of one in five firefighter posts to cuts, with fire engines taken off the run and fire stations closed up and down the country, means that there is no resilience left," he said."Wildfires are intensive incidents, requiring a large number of firefighters and specialist resources. They are becoming increasingly severe and frequent as a result of the climate emergency."Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue estimated the blaze had burned through 72 hectares and would remain on the scene overnight."Crews are still working in three sectors, dealing with an increase in flare-ups, hotspots and deep-seated fires identified using drones," the statement read. "This is due to the weather conditions."Crews travelled from Merseyside, South Wales, Greater Manchester, Leicestershire, Surrey, Lincolnshire, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, Avon, Essex and Kent among others, to assist local emergency services.Heat health alerts were extended into next week for much of England.Officials have said the country is suffering from "nationally significant" water shortfalls.
The national drought group, which includes the Met Office, regulators, government, water companies and other organisations, has met as five areas of the country remain in drought, with six more in prolonged dry weather status.
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