Amber heat health alert in force as temperatures set to soar in UK - and severe weather hits Europe

Temperatures could reach 30C today as the UK braces for four days of hot weather, with an amber heat health alert in force.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) alert - the second in two weeks - which covers London, the East Midlands, South East, South West and East of England, will last until 6pm on Tuesday.

A yellow heat health alert also covers Yorkshire and The Humber and the West Midlands over the same period.

Find out the latest weather forecast

The previous amber health heat alert was issued for all parts of England on 19 June, the first time it had been used since September 2023.

The UKHSA alerts are designed to warn health and social care workers about the impacts of hot weather on their services, including possible weather-related deaths in those aged 65 or with long-term conditions. They are not public weather warnings.

Europe is also facing severe weather - with wildfires breaking out just south of Athens on Thursday and authorities banning outdoor activity and non-essential travel for building and delivery staff on Friday.

Meanwhile, storms in France and Germany have left at least three people dead and authorities in Spain are warning residents to stay indoors due to hotter-than-normal temperatures.

34C possible on Monday

A heatwave could be possible with the next four days of above-average temperatures.

Highs of 34C are possible on Monday - with a 20% chance of beating the hottest June day on record of 35.6C from 1976, according to Sky News weather producer Joanna Robinson.

The likelihood of a record-breaking temperature on Monday could increase over the weekend as the day approaches.

If the temperature does exceed 35.6C, it would make it the hottest start to Wimbledon ever - with the world-famous tennis tournament beginning on Monday. The highest temperature for the opening day of the tournament so far came on 25 June 2001, with 29.3C at Kew Gardens.

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Heatwave criteria are likely to be met in a few places on Sunday and Monday, mainly across parts of central and eastern England.

A heatwave is recorded when the threshold is met, varying between 25 degrees for most of the UK and 28 degrees for London and the South East, for three consecutive days.

Robinson said there was some uncertainty over how quickly daytime temperatures will start to fall - but it is likely to happen from Tuesday.

A rapid analysis from scientists at World Weather Attribution has found that June heatwaves in the South East - where there would need to be three consecutive days of temperatures above 28C - are about 10 times more likely due to climate change compared with the cooler pre-industrial climate.

'Rise in temperatures over next few days'

Met Office meteorologist Jonathan Vautrey said: "The big talking point at the moment is the rise in temperatures we're going to be seeing over the next few days."

Conditions in Glastonbury, where more than 200,000 festival-goers will be exposed to the heat, are expected to be between 26-27C this weekend.

By contrast, northwest England, parts of Northern Ireland, and southern Scotland could see some rain today, and Scotland will see average temperatures for the time of year, but across England it could hit between 29C and 30C in the south east, the forecaster said.

There will also be some clouds and it will be quite blustery, but it will ease on Sunday.

On Sunday, temperatures will pick up, northwestern Scotland may still see rain, but everywhere else will be warmer, with expected highs of 30-31C in the southeast.

There will be a northwest and southeast split on Monday, with a chance of it feeling wetter and windier across the northwest, but the heat will remain across central and southern regions.

Temperatures reached highs of 29C in Coningsby, Lincolnshire, on Friday.

It comes after 2023 brought the hottest June on record with heatwaves also seen in June 2017 and June 2020.

Last Saturday was the hottest day of 2025 so far, with a provisional temperature of 33.2C recorded in Charlwood, Surrey.

(c) Sky News 2025: Amber heat health alert in force as temperatures set to soar in UK - and severe weather hits Europe