Record heat has scorched Britain, with wildfires raging in London and roads melting elsewhere in the country.
The heat at Heathrow Airport hit 104.4 degrees Fahrenheit mid-afternoon on Tuesday, setting a national record. In East London, a grass fire sparked and burned down at least five homes. Other fires broke out in nearby London suburbs.
“I saw a little smoke, I walked around and saw a small fire and then saw it just go up. I’ve never seen anything like it,” Walter Martin, who owns a pub near where the grass fire started, told the Daily Mail.
North of London in Cambridgeshire, the sweltering summer sun melted the asphalt on the A14 road. Commuter trains also stopped running on many lines north of London, causing more transit chaos.
The heat wave is expected to break in the U.K. on Wednesday, likely leading to thunderstorms as cooler air fronts meet the Saharan winds that caused the heat in the first place.
• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.
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