NewsUK NewsHeatwaveThe Met Office has issued a rarely-seen red weather warning as the heatwave could push temperatures to 40C10:43, 22 Jun 2026Updated 11:02, 22 Jun 2026An "exceptional" spell of hot and humid weather is expected in various parts of England and Wales as temperatures could rise to 40C.‌A red warning for extreme heat has been announced by the Met Office, coming into effect at 9am on Wednesday, June 24, until 9pm on Thursday, June 25.‌The forecaster said: "During the heatwave expected to affect a large part of England and Wales this week, the highlighted area now looks increasingly likely to see a two to three day period where maximum temperatures in the shade exceed 37 Celsius, perhaps rising to 38 to 40 Celsius in some places.‌"The heat will be accompanied by high humidity, exacerbating the potential for discomfort and health impacts, with very warm and humid night times also reducing the ability for people to recover overnight."‌The hottest temperature ever recorded in the UK is 40.3C in July 2022 at Coningsby in Lincolnshire, meaning this record could be broken in the coming days.The abnormally high temperatures are likely to cause population-wide adverse health effects, leading to "serious illness or danger to life".The red heat warning has "a high likelihood and high impact" and will also lead to travel delays and cancellations as well as to the potential loss of power and other essential services like water, electricity, gas or mobile phone services.Article continues belowThe Met said: "Significant disruption to daily life is likely and the public should take every effort to make precautions and adapt their daily routines where possible to cope with these levels of heat, which up to now have been extremely rare for the UK."To minimise the impact of the extreme heat, people have been advised to drink plenty of fluids, keep out of the sun and avoid exercise between 11am and 3pm, wear sunscreen and stay in the shade.Areas impacted by red weather warningNorthamptonshireBedfordCambridgeshireCentral BedfordshireEssexHertfordshireLutonThurrockBracknell ForestBuckinghamshireEast SussexGreater LondonHampshireKentMilton KeynesOxfordshireReadingSloughSurreyWest BerkshireWest SussexWindsor and MaidenheadWokinghamBath and North East SomersetBristolDorsetGloucestershireNorth SomersetSomersetSouth GloucestershireSwindonWiltshireBlaenau GwentBridgendCaerphillyCardiffCarmarthenshireMerthyr TydfilMonmouthshireNeath Port TalbotNewportPowysRhondda Cynon TafSwanseaTorfaenVale of GlamorganHerefordshireWarwickshireWest Midlands ConurbationWorcestershireChoose Daily Mirror as a 'Preferred Source' on Google News for quick access to the news you value.‌WeatherHeatwaveBreaking News