Nearly 20 houses were destroyed by grass fires in Wennington on Tuesday as the UK sweltered in its hottest day on record – as the public is warned the “danger isn’t over” and the heat still “poses risks of new fires sparking off”.
Local councillor Ray Morgon told Sky News he believes around 18 to 19 homes were destroyed in the village in Havering, east London.
Mr Morgon continued: “We’ve got our housing team who are helping people with their immediate housing needs, but obviously we need to have a conversation with people about their longer term housing needs.”
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Fire crews remain at the site of a huge blaze which has destroyed properties and grassland in the village.
Sky News reporter Sadiya Chowdhury has says she has been told the “danger isn’t over” and the heat still “poses risks of new fires sparking off”.
She added the blaze yesterday covered 20 hectares of grassland.
Two detached houses, two semi-detached houses, two rows of terraced houses, six single storey garages, 12 stables and five cars were set alight.
Aerial footage showed flames tearing across tinder-dry fields and approaching a historic church.
Asked what conditions were like, a firefighter at the scene replied: “Absolute hell.”
Flames ripped through homes elsewhere across Britain as the country was scorched by extreme heat.
Scenes of destroyed properties and failing transport infrastructure gave the country a glimpse into what could become the new reality in summer months because of climate change.
A new record for the hottest day ever seen, of 40.3C, was recorded in Coningsby, in Lincolnshire, on Tuesday afternoon – beating the previous record of 38.7C in Cambridge three years ago, by 1.6C.
Major incidents were announced by fire brigades in London, Leicestershire and South Yorkshire as dozens of fires broke in the sweltering heat – with flames ripping through houses, schools and churches.
A ring of fires in and around London lead to people being evacuated and many taken to hospital.
London mayor Sadiq Khan said yesterday was the “busiest day for the fire service in London since the Second World War”.
He told Sky News: “On a normal day, the fire service receives, roughly speaking, 350 calls on a busy day. Yesterday they received more than 2,600 calls.”
Mr Khan also said 41 properties were destroyed in London and 16 firefighters were injured to some extent.
He added that at least some of them were taken to hospital because of “heat stress”.
The London mayor continued: “It is really important for us to recognise that one of the consequences of climate change are these sorts of temperatures which lead to the sort of fires you’re seeing behind you.”
Mr Khan also urged people not to have barbecues on Wednesday despite temperatures dropping, because the grass is still dry and will allow fire to spread rapidly if it catches alight.
All around the country firefighters were inundated with calls on Tuesday, with one fire chief calling the “brutal” day a “game-changer” and a preview of the effects of climate change.
The Met Office said 34 observation sites across England provisionally broke the previous all-time record, ranging from Bramham, in West Yorkshire, to Charlwood, in Surrey, while a further five had equalled it on Tuesday.
A total of six sites, mostly in Greater London, saw temperatures reach or exceed 40C.
Scotland experienced its hottest day on record, with the temperature reaching 34.8C in Charterhall in the Scottish Borders, Met Office provisional figures showed.
Elsewhere, a serious blaze occurred in Barnsley when a row of houses in the Moorland Avenue area was consumed by flames, with crews continuing to battle fires elsewhere in the area.
Doncaster Council said a major blaze in Clayton also spread to three residential properties and there were reports of houses on fire in the Kiverton Park and Maltby areas of Rotherham.
Leicestershire Fire and Rescue tweeted: “We have declared a major incident due to high demand across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.
“We will not be attending Automatic Fire alarms. Please only call us if it’s an emergency.”
Nine people have died since Saturday in swimming accidents and there has been widespread disruption to train services.
Temperatures are expected to drop by up to 10C in some areas on Wednesday, with heavy showers and thunderstorms to lash parts of the country, potentially causing localised flooding.
However other parts of the UK will still see highs of up to 30C and with little rain for months in some areas, the threat of wildfires remains.
Dave Walton, deputy chief fire officer for West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service, said Tuesday was a “peek into the future” amid huge demand for firefighters.
He said: “It’s about a completely and fundamentally different operating environment where fires burn with such ferocity, and spread with such speed in suburban areas that you can’t stop them.
“We’ve seen the kind of conditions faced by international colleagues just miles from our capital city, and in towns, villages and cities the length and breadth of the country.
“Today was about climate change, the hottest UK day on record – ever!”
Chief Secretary to the Treasury Simon Clarke said the government will “stand by” those impacted by the fires.
“I’m absolutely certain the government will look at whatever is needed to make sure that people are looked after at a time like this,” he told Sky News.
“The government will stand by people who need assistance after an emergency event, as we always do.”
Record temperatures bring rail disruption
It comes as dozens of trains were cancelled or delayed across England on Wednesday morning because of problems caused by the extreme heat.
The hottest day on record in the UK on Tuesday caused damage to overheard wires, tracks, and signalling systems.
National Rail has told customers to check before setting off on their journeys and to only travel if absolutely necessary.
Meanwhile, LNER is advising customers not to travel after the heat caused major damage to the rail infrastructure on its network.
Train services across the Great Northern and Thameslink network will also be cancelled, delayed or revised due to a “number of incidents”.
South Western Railway and Avanti West Coast services are also affected.
You can see the full breakdown of today’s disruption by visiting the National Rail enquiries website.