An abnormal heatwave
July 2022 was the driest July in England in 111 years. According to the United Kingdom Meteorological Office, 15.8 mm of rain has fallen in England since the beginning of the month a quarter less than the July average last seen in 1911, The Times newspaper reported on Thursday.
For the whole of the UK, this July was the driest since 1984. "Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are also experiencing dry weather, but the south of East Anglia as well as south-east England are experiencing the most challenging conditions," the weather service said. Experts do not expect the situation to change significantly in the coming days and weeks.
It is worth noting that no regions of the kingdom are currently registering drought, which was last seen in the country in the summer of 2018. However, experts do not rule out the possibility. There are an increasing number of grass fires in the suburbs of London and the south-east of England, which have already damaged several homes. People in the region are being advised to conserve water and not to use hoses to water plants in gardens.
"It is not only July that has been dry. Every month since the beginning of the year with the exception of February, rainfall has been below the UK average," Mark McCarthy of the Meteorological Office told the publication.
British meteorologists warn that in the future, as the planet's climate changes, the summer months in the UK will become hotter and drier, while winters will be warmer and wetter, increasing the risk of flooding.
On 19 July, temperatures in the country hit three new all-time highs. The previous record of 38.7 degrees, set in Cambridge in 2019, was surpassed by 1.6 degrees Celsius. First, in the village of Charlwood, Surrey, South East England, thermometers reached 39.1 degrees, then the air at London Heathrow Airport warmed to 40.2 degrees and a little later it was announced that the temperature in Coningsby, Lincolnshire, reached 40.3 degrees.
