The AA has warned drivers “not to drop their guard” when setting out on long journeys this week, with vehicle interiors possibly reaching 60C when in the sun.
“Drivers should never leave children, vulnerable passengers or pets inside a parked vehicle, even for a short time,” the breakdown service said.
Age UK recommended staying inside between 11:00 and 15:00, and taking regular cold baths and showers.
Climate change is believed to have played a role in such hot spells as this.
According to the Met Office’s State of the UK Climate report, external, the number of days in the UK with temperatures above 28C has more than doubled and the number of days with temperatures above 30C has more than trebled in the most recent decade, compared with the 1961-1990 average.
It is not just the UK experiencing this historic heatwave, with several European countries seeing May heat records broken over the last few days.
In Spain, 38C was recorded on Sunday. Across France and Germany, with temperatures climbing into the mid-30s, hundreds of localities saw records for May being broken.
Temperatures across France, Germany, Switzerland, Spain and northern Italy have been 10 to 15C above average for late May – and with the unprecedented heatwave expected to last for most of the week, it is likely more local records will be broken.
