Some 850,000 people have been banned from using hosepipes as the third day of the grueling heatwave kicks off.
A heat dome is gripping western Europe for most of this week, sparking extreme temperatures in the UK and France, with the Met Office expecting temperatures to hit 39C as red and amber weather warnings remain in place.
The forecaster has expanded its red weather warning to Friday for London and parts of southeast England.
Yesterday saw June’s previous temperature record – set in 1976 – smashed three times, with warmer weather expected today.
With no respite in sight for at least another day, South East Water announced a hosepipe ban for people in Kent affecting around 850,000 customers. The move will help ensure supply over the coming weeks and months, the water company said.
Queen Alexandra Hospital, Portsmouth, and Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals declared a critical incident after crucial cooling systems broke down.
Meanwhile, more than 500 schools, most of them in southern England, remain partially or fully shut, along with several tourist attractions in London.
Follow our live blog for the latest on the scorching heatwave.
Live Feed
Sort:
Newest first
Oldest first
June 25, 2026 12:10 pm
Swimmer dies during visit to UK beach
The man died during a visit to Aberavon beach in Wales (Picture: Shutterstock / jax10289)
A man has died on a UK beach on the first day of the Met Office’s rare red heat warning.
The 50-year-old man from Cilfrew entered the sea at Aberavon beach in Port Talbot, South Wales, at around 4.30pm yesterday.
He then got into trouble in the water, requiring medical assistance. Coastguard personnel performed CPR, but they were unable to save the man, who died at the scene.
June 25, 2026 12:00 pm
Hundreds of heat deaths in Europe as France records hottest day in history
Mainland Europe is also feeling the heat after France recorded a temperature of 44.3C – the hottest in the country’s history.
At least 250 people have died across the continent since the beginning of the heatwave, including an elderly British woman at a campsite in Western France.
A three-year-old boy was also found dead in a car in Paris as temperatures in the French capital soared to 41C.
Earlier in the week a French mum was charged for manslaughter over the death of her children, two and four, who were ‘forgotten’ in her car while she shopped.
June 25, 2026 11:35 am
Climate change event cancelled due to heatwave
The live podcast recording was scheduled to take place at Bath Abbey (Picture: Shutterstock / Evannovostro)
A climate change podcast event has been cancelled over safety fears in response to this week’s heatwave.
Climate podcast Outrage + Optimism was due to be recorded in front of a live audience at Bath Abbey.
One of the podcast’s co-hosts, Christiana Figueres, said in a statement: ‘A climate podcast event postponed by a climate emergency. Let that sink in.
‘We’ve postponed our Bath Abbey recording with the University of Bath to keep people safe. The recording can wait. The crisis won’t.’
Yesterday, an extreme heat conference in London was similarly cancelled as temperatures reached record highs.
The talk was due to take place at LSE’s Shaw Library in central London on Wednesday as part of London Climate Action Week.
But university bosses were forced to pull the talk at the eleventh hour.
‘We regret that this event has been cancelled due to the red extreme heat warning issued by the UK Met Office,’ a notice said on the LSE website.
June 25, 2026 11:20 am
Met Office extends rare red extreme heat warning
If you were hoping for the sizzling heat to ease quickly, the weather has other plans.
In fact, now the Met Office has extended the red weather warning for extreme heat.
The red extreme heat warning is now active until 9pm tomorrow, along with an amber heat alert and yellow thunderstorm warnings covering most of the UK.
This week has been the second time the forecaster has used the red alert for heat, the first time being in the summer of 2022.
June 25, 2026 10:55 am
How the heatwave impacts mental health
June 25, 2026 10:32 am
Map shows where the hosepipe ban is active
A map shows where the hosepipe ban is in place, covering most of Kent (Picture: South East Water)
A large chunk of Kent is under the temporary use ban on hosepipes, active until 00:01 on Friday, July 3.
The affected areas cover Sevenoaks, Maidstone, Ashford and Canterbury.
June 25, 2026 10:16 am
Phone data reveals people avoiding boiling London
Mobile phone data since Monday shows fewer people are out and about in London since the heatwave started.
Figures from Virgin Media show an almost 20% drop in mobile phone usage at King’s Cross today, while London’s West End saw a 13% drop during peak rush hour.
The Westminster area saw a 7% fall in mobile phone use yesterday.
London City financial hub recorded a 12% drop in usage yesterday as the UK experienced its hottest day ever, a record that might be broken today.
Fewer people are on the move in central London, where several major attractions are closed (Picture: AFP/Getty Images)
June 25, 2026 9:45 am
Nearly 1,000,000 people banned from using hosepipes
Around 850,000 households are affected (Picture: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)
South East Water has announced a hosepipe ban in Kent, affecting around 850,000 customers.
People are being asked to adhere to the ban ‘immediately’, which has been introduced in response ‘to high temperatures and record demand for water across Kent’.
The affected area includes Maidstone, Faversham, Canterbury and Royal Tunbridge Wells.
South East Water’s chief executive, David Hinton, said: ‘We completely understand why everyone reaches for the hose when the weather gets this hot.
‘It’s natural to want to enjoy our gardens and cool down, and we know how frustrating it is to hear that restrictions are coming into place.’
He added the ‘sheer scale of this sustained heatwave’ meant drinking water was being drawn from storage tanks faster than they can be refilled.
‘To safeguard that shared supply and prevent any homes from facing a sudden loss of water, we sadly need to ask our communities to not use their hosepipes immediately,’ he continued.
‘We are deeply sorry for the disruption this causes, and we are incredibly grateful to everyone helping us protect Kent’s water.’
June 25, 2026 9:45 am
Full list of UK school closures due to heat
June 25, 2026 9:21 am
Warmest June night on record
Night-time has not brought much respite as outdoor temperatures stayed well above 20C in many areas in the extreme heat zone.
In Cardiff, overnight temperatures didn’t fall below 23.5C, which would be the warmest June night ever when this is officially confirmed.
Many UK homes are not suited for extreme heat, and houses might not cool down even at night. Indoor heat can mean people struggle to cool down properly after a hot day, adding to the exhaustion.
Here are some tips that can help you sleep during a heatwave.
Sleep on the lowest level of your home
Switch off all electrical items as even standby mode can generate heat
Take a lukewarm or cool shower before bedtime
Wear cold socks
Avoid alcohol and caffeine in the evening
Stay hydrated and wear loose clothing
Don’t eat right before going to bed
June 25, 2026 9:00 am
Full list of Eurostar cancellations
Eurostar has axed several trains between London and Paris this week due to the heat dome.
Here are the cancelled services today and tomorrow:
Thursday
07:01 London St Pancras to Paris Gare du Nord
10:07 Paris Gare du Nord to London St Pancras
13:31 London to Paris
18:08 Paris to London
Friday
07:01 London to Paris
12:35 Paris to London
16:01 London to Paris
18:08 Paris to London
19:01 London to Paris
20:28 Paris to London
Have you been affected? Please contact noora.mykkanen@metro.co.uk
June 25, 2026 8:45 am
Top foods to eat and avoid in a heatwave
Not all foods are created equal when it comes to extreme heat.
While ice cream might seem like an easy option to help stay cool, experts would advise otherwise.
June 25, 2026 8:24 am
Disruption risk on railways remains ‘high’
The extreme heat has wreaked havoc on the railways (Picture: AFP/Getty Images)
The heatwave so far has been tricky for train passengers as extreme heat means many sections of the railway, especially those in constant sun, have to run at a reduced speed to avoid damage.
Several train operators have reduced their timetables to mitigate against the heat.
This is what National Rail is saying about travelling during the heatwave: ‘If you are travelling on Thursday 25 June to, from or within the red weather warning zone, please only travel if absolutely necessary.
‘On Friday 26 June, only travel if absolutely necessary if travelling to, from or within the amber weather warning area.’
Southeastern, which runs services between London Waterloo and Kent, said yesterday many customers faced ‘difficult’ journeys yesterday and that ‘the risk of disruption’ today is high.
Here is a roundup of all the train operators which have made changes and alterations to services due to the weather:
Avanti West Coast
c2c
Chiltern Railways
CrossCountry
East Midlands Railway
Elizabeth line
Gatwick Express
Great Northern
Greater Anglia
Great Western Railway
Heathrow Express
London Northwestern Railway
London Overground
LNER
Merseyrail
Northern
Southeastern
Southern
South Western Railway
Stansted Express
Thameslink
TransPennine Express
Transport for Wales
West Midlands Railway
June 25, 2026 8:14 am
UK town that clocked the new record temperature
Gosport has been crowned the hottest spot in the UK after the town near Portsmouth saw temperatures hit 36.1C yesterday.
At the other extreme, the coldest place was Magilligan in County Londonderry, which recorded just 8.9C.
Wednesday 24 June provisionally achieved the UK’s highest June temperature on record 🌡️
Here are the other extremes from the day: https://t.co/xsMwTiYpHg
The flying ants were also out in force, resulting in spurious returns on the radar where it wasn’t raining 🪰 pic.twitter.com/s2iMLxNvUU
— Met Office (@metoffice) June 24, 2026
June 25, 2026 8:01 am
What the weather has in store today
A map shows where the red, amber and yellow weather warnings are active today (Picture: Met Office)
Most of the UK woke up groggy after tropical nights as temperatures barely dropped below 20C.
And the heat will be rising fast this morning under the strong June sunshine, the Met Office said.
The weather map is a medley of red and amber extreme heat warnings, and a yellow alert for thunderstorms added to the mix.
The latest thunder warning covering Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Plymouth, Somerset and Torbay is active from 6pm until midnight today.
It could bring some flooding and heavy strong winds, causing damage to buildings and hampering travel in the area, along with loss of power.
The danger to life extreme heat red alert is active until midnight today in London and South East of England, the Midlands, South West and East of England, and south Wales.
High humidity means the conditions will feel exceptionally tough, and could lead to serious illness or danger to life even for people who are not vulnerable to heat.
Temperatures will rise quickly on Thursday morning under strong June sunshine, although an increasingly brisk breeze in the south will make it feel a touch fresher in places
Stay #WeatherAware ⚠️ pic.twitter.com/lu1y0zcJ6j
— Met Office (@metoffice) June 24, 2026
June 25, 2026 7:47 am
Portsmouth hospital declares critical incident
Queen Alexandra Hospital in Portsmouth has been hit by the brutal heatwave, which brought tropical nights across large parts of England and Wales, with more extreme heat on the way for the rest of the week.
Cooling units at the city’s major hospital, which employs over 8,000 people, failed yesterday evening, causing temperatures to rise inside.
The cooling units are used by the hospital’s digital systems and clinical services like theatres, cardiac catheter laboratories and diagnostic scanning.
What does it mean for patients?
Some planned appointments and care have been cancelled until the issue is fixed.
Patients still attending the hospital should take water with them as the hospital is very hot, and they are asked to limit the number of people they bring along,
Engineers are on site repairing the cooling system, the hospital said.
June 24, 2026 11:21 pm
Heatwave melts Tube network
June 24, 2026 11:00 pm
Pictures of the day as Brits try to survive June’s hottest ever day
June 24, 2026 10:40 pm
Fire engine catches fire on June’s hottest day
The A350 at Charlton Marshall in Dorset remains closed after a fire engine caught fire while responding to an incident. The crew stopped the vehicle safely, and thankfully, no injuries were reported. Emergency services confirmed the blaze damaged the vehicle cab and nearby grass verge along with telegraph cables.
Paramedics assessed the firefighters involved as a precaution. All were unharmed and able to continue their duties after the incident. (Picture: UKNIP)
June 24, 2026 10:01 pm
More than ten people taken to hospital after getting stuck on M25 for hours
The South East Coast Ambulance Service says more than 10 people have been hospitalised, ‘primarily with minor and heat-related’ conditions after being stuck in traffic.
Crews have now left the scene after assessing and treating a number of patients, the ambulance service adds.
Arrow
MORE: Family shop accused of being a ‘tax scam’ by GB News presenter are ‘speaking to lawyers’
Arrow
MORE: What are politicians doing about this heat?
Arrow
MORE: Central London grinds to a halt after ‘fatal incident’ shuts Victoria Embankment
Comments
Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google
Add as preferred source
News Updates
Stay on top of the headlines with daily email updates.