Safety warnings as bodies of two boys who drowned in separate incidents are found

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Temperatures have reached near-record levels for June across most of the UK in a heatwave that looks set to continue into July, prompting water shortages and more safety warnings.

There was a call to avoid wild swimming after a teenager died in a river in West Yorkshire.

Police said the body of a 17-year-old was recovered from the River Aire in Leeds in the early hours of Wednesday. They had responded to reports of a boy getting into difficulty in the water near Cardigan Fields, Kirkstall, at about 6.45pm on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the body of Ryan Evans, 13, was recovered from Westport Lake in Staffordshire where he was last seen swimming with friends on Monday. The discovery followed an extensive search by emergency services and underwater teams, police said.

A 31-year-old man who died in a lake near Redhill in Surrey on Monday has been named as Edward Savage.

The Royal Life Saving Society urged the public to stick to designated swimming areas. Its director of education, Mike Dunn, said: “In previous years, we have seen a tragic amount of preventable deaths as people flocked to open water sites not suitable for swimming.

“These sites included rivers, quarries, lakes and reservoirs – all of which have many dangers including very cold water, currents, obstacles and uneven depths. They look so inviting but can be deadly.”

In Telford at least 1,000 homes were without water. Severn Trent said a huge spike in demand created airlocks in the supply pipes. Telford and Wrekin council set up water distribution points and offered free showers in council leisure centres to those affected. Bottled water was delivered to the most vulnerable customers.

Supplies began to return to normal by lunchtime on Wednesday after engineers cleared the airlocks.

The record for the hottest day of the year in the UK was broken again on Wednesday when the temperature hit 30.8C (87.4F) in Porthmadog, north-west Wales. The record for the hottest June day in Wales is 33.7C.

Aviemore broke the previous 2018 high for Scotland by hitting 28.1C on Wednesday afternoon.

Northern Ireland’s record for the hottest June day of 30.8C, set in the summer of 1976, was also under threat, the Met Office said.

Sarah Kent, a Met Office meteorologist, said: “Temperatures are still climbing, even as we speak – horses don’t cross the line until 4pm or 5pm.”



Met Office (@metoffice) Porthmadog in Wales reached 31.9 Celsius and as the #heatwave continues, some spots in northwest England, Northern Ireland and Scotland could reach 30 or 31 Celsius - this is most likely on Thursday 🌡️🌡️🌡️ pic.twitter.com/HU2eF83Pg4

On Thursday, parts of Scotland and Northern Ireland were expected to be warmer than Ibiza and Athens, with temperatures of 30C forecast.

BBC Weather (@bbcweather) I'll just leave this here... ☀️📈🌡️

😉

Jo pic.twitter.com/9Dvieor8PQ

The heatwave is forecast to continue into the weekend, but there is a chance of thundery showers in south-west England on Saturday.