UK records hottest June as heatwave grips Europe

Britain recorded its hottest June on record this week as temperatures hit 36.1 degrees Celsius in southern England, amid a heat wave sweeping across Western Europe that has claimed dozens of lives and disrupted daily life.

Public health experts warned the extreme heat poses risks not only to the elderly and vulnerable but also to healthy people. Last year, about 1,500 people in the UK died of heat-related causes, and that number is expected to rise significantly this summer.

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution urged caution near the sea after 18 people lost their lives in drowning accidents in the heatwave last month, citing the danger of sudden temperature shocks when moving from hot land to cold seawater. Scientists say extreme heatwaves, once rare in Britain, are expected to become more frequent, longer-lasting and more deadly in the years ahead.