South West swelters as the Heat Health Alert continues

We're being told to be cautious today - as temperatures soar across the South West.

We can expect the hottest week of the year so far, amid a yellow heat health alert everywhere in our region, as well as in most parts of England over the next few days.

Health bosses are reminding us all to drink plenty of water in the hot weather, with the Integrated Care Board that covers Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire urging people to seek shade and wear sun protection - especially during the hottest times of the day.

The UK Health Security Agency says the hot weather this week may have "significant impacts" on the NHS and social care sector.

Met Office spokesperson Nicola Maxey is also warning of more extreme weather to come over the next few days - following today's peaks of 30 or 31 degrees celcius.

She said: "As we move into the middle of the week we start to see an increasing risk of thunderstorms developing, particularly in parts of England and Wales, and the rain is such that it could cause some local disruption.

"This is the sort of rainfall that could cause surface water flooding and heavy rain that takes a while to clear away.

"There could also be some lightning potential for hail and gusty conditions."

Under the warning by the UK Health Security Agency, they say that 'significant impacts are possible across the health and social care sector due to the high temperatures'.

This includes:

• Observed increase in mortality across the population likely, particularly in the 65+ age group or those with health conditions, but impacts may also be seen in younger age groups
• Increased demand for remote healthcare services likely
• Internal temperatures in care settings (hospitals and care homes) may exceed recommended threshold for clinical risk assessment
• Impact on ability of services to be delivered due to heat effects on workforce possible and many indoor environments likely to be overheating, leading to increased risk to vulnerable people living independently in the community as well as in care settings

You can stay up to date on the UK Health Security Agency's Heat Health Alert on their website.

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