Thundery showers on their way

The heatwave is to continue today although thundery showers are expected across the capital with some risk of flooding. The highest temperatures so far were on the Underground yesterday, reaching 100F on some trains.

London Underground said they had no reports of people becoming too distressed by the heat. But London Ambulance Service said the heat led to a 25 per cent increase in emergency calls.

A spokesman said: "We had around 4,000 calls by the end of the day when usually we have just over 3,000. I am sure that has been caused by the hot weather with people complaining of dehydration and heatrelatedproblems."

The London-area was warmer than southern Spain with temperatures in west London of 32.2C (90F) by mid-afternoon yesterday.

But downpours, which fell on Derbyshire, Bedfordshire and Nottinghamshire yesterday, are forecast for the South-East today and tomorrow.

Simon Williams from the Meteorological Office in London said: "In Woburn yesterday almost half an inch of rain was recorded in an hour. If that amount falls on London there will be a risk of flooding."