UK's August Heatwave Has Been Cancelled

The heatwave predicted to hit the UK this month has been cancelled.

The Met Office had predicted earlier this summer that we would see the hot weather return for a couple of weeks this August, but that now appears to have hit the buffers.

Meteorologists have now revealed the damp and dismal weather we have become accustomed to of late is set to continue.

Speaking to the Sun, Steven Keates from the Met Office said: "This summer is not going to be remembered for warmth. It's been very bland.

"We've had flooding, some parts of the country have seen double their average rainfall and temperatures have been unremarkable.

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"It's been wishy-washy to say the least - and that's how it's going to end."

He added: "A heatwave is not on the cards - but let's not give up hope altogether.

"Some September's have come up trumps over recent years."

The latest forecast from the Met Office predicts that much of the country will be 'cloudy with outbreaks of drizzle' in the coming weeks.

Today's forecast reads: "Rather cloudy, though some sunshine to the lee of high ground where it will be quite warm.

"Patchy light rain or drizzle in places, mainly across western coasts and hills, with a more organised band across parts of northern Scotland."

Earlier this month, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change published its report warning of 'unprecedented' changes to the Earth's climate becoming 'irreversible' if action isn't taken.

Describing the situation as 'code red' for our planet, the IPCC report, which is the sixth of its kind, found that global temperatures are going to reach 1.5°C higher than pre-industrial levels in the next 20 years.

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If this is the case, experts warned that this will lead to catastrophic environmental destruction and worsening extreme weather conditions.

In a statement following the report's publication, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said it represented a 'code red for humanity'.

He said: "The alarm bells are deafening, and the evidence is irrefutable: greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel burning and deforestation are choking our planet and putting billions of people at immediate risk."

Speaking at the time, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who will host global leaders at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland, later this year, said he hoped it would act as a 'wake up call'.

He said: "Today's report makes for sobering reading, and it is clear that the next decade is going to be pivotal to securing the future of our planet.

"I hope today's report will be a wake-up call for the world to take action now, before we meet in Glasgow in November for the critical COP26 summit."

Topics: Met Office, Science, Weather, climate change, heatwave

Dominic Smithers

Dominic graduated from the University of Leeds with a degree in French and History. Like you, Dom has often questioned how much use a second language has been. Well, after stints working at the Manchester Evening News, the Accrington Observer and the Macclesfield Express, along with never setting foot in France, he realised the answer is surprisingly little. But I guess, c'est la vie. Contact us at [email protected]

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