‘A wake-up call’: as extreme heat hits UK, experts say net zero is the only way out

theguardian.com:

Hundreds of firefighters battled blazes across England on Tuesday as temperatures surged to a historic high of 40.3C, capping two days of extreme heat that scientists warn is “a wake up call” for the climate emergency.

In what climate experts labelled “a grim milestone”, the previous record temperature of 38.7C was first broken at Charlwood in Surrey before noon and then surpassed at Heathrow, which broke the 40C mark at 12.50pm. By 4pm at RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire, the thermometer showed 40.3C – a full 1.6C higher than the previous 2019 high, which was exceeded at least 34 sites across the country.

Overnight on Monday, a record overnight temperature of 25.9C was reached in Emley Moor, West Yorkshire, easily exceeding the previous daily minimum of 23.9C, recorded in Brighton in 1990.

Fire brigades in London, Leicestershire, Norfolk and South Yorkshire were among those to declare major incidents as flames destroyed buildings and devoured tinder-dry fields in Wennington, east London, grasslands elsewhere in the capital and in Groby, Leicestershire.

Thirty fire crews tackled a grass fire in Upminster, which sent smoke billowing across the M25. In the West Midlands, firefighters tackled a blaze at Lickey Hills country park near Bromsgrove, leaving scorched earth and skeletal trees. A major incident is defined as having “serious consequences” and requires a special response by one or more emergency responder agency.

Households in south-east England were told to save water by switching off washing machines and farmers warned the drought was hitting animal feed supplies.

Experts calculated that close to 1,000 people are likely to die as a result of the current hot spell, stretching from Sunday to Wednesday. Such a toll would be