UK heatwave: ‘Exceptional’ wildfire risk during four-day extreme heat warning

An official drought declaration by water companies and the government is expected tomorrow.

Today, much of England and Wales entered the four-day amber heat warning period with the risk of fire set at “exceptional”.

Fire chiefs urge people not to barbecue and make sure cigarettes are extinguished. Conservationists are calling for an England-wide ban on using hose pipes to protect struggling wildlife and rivers which are at exceptionally low levels in parts of the country.