UK heatwave - late June to early July 2015

Causes

• ^^High pressure^^ weather system (^^anticyclone^^) was sitting over central and southern Europe
• ^^Hot, dry air^^ from the European continent was brought to the UK by air moving ^^clockwise^^ around the anticyclone
• The anticyclone ^^blocked low pressure systems^^ that would normally bring cooler, rainy conditions from the Atlantic Ocean

Consequences

• Temperatures were higher than usual and rainfall was lower than usual
• Train tracks began to ^^buckle^^ causing cancellations across the country
• Temperature hit ^^36.7°C^^ in Heathrow, the highest temperature on record until July 2022
• ^^999 calls doubled^^ over the first week of July as people, particularly the elderly, struggled in the heat
• Car breakdown calls we’re up ^^14%^^ as cars struggled to work

Responses

• Network Rail set ^^speed restrictions^^ on train lines which were vulnerable to buckling to reduce cancellations. This allowed train services to run across the country
• The government issued a ^^Level 3 Heatwave Action Alert^^. Without this, there could have been many more than the ^^500 additional deaths^^

How successful?

Very

• Allowed people to work - economic
• Reduced deaths - social