High Temperature Hits UK, Melts Roads 

High Temperature Hits UK, Melts Roads

The UK has started feeling the effects of heat following a surge in temperature reaching 104F (40C), causing discomfort to people and melting roads.

Gritters were deployed to shore up failing roads as temperatures hits the peak, destroying them.

Cambridgeshire County Council took the decision to deploy the vehicles after motorists complained that their tyres had started ‘ripping the tarmac off the roads.’

Drivers have been warned by police to take care on the B1165 near Newton in Cambridgeshire, where the tarmac has melted, and Agnes Owen, who works at a service station nearby, said that it “sounded like cars were driving on water”.

Evan Laughlin, from Cambridgeshire County Council, said gritters had been used to distribute granite dust to stabilise the road surface and stop bitumen becoming stuck on wheels.

“Normally the roads stand the summer temperatures we get, but just this week it’s very hot,” she said.

Motorists in Tarleton, Lancashire also discovered tar on their wheels as the roads melted, while some commuters in Croydon refused to use trams after noticing the track appeared to be disintegrating.

Transport for London said they had thrown sand down to help protect the rails. 

Rory O’Neill, TfL’s Director for London Trams, said: “The flexible sealant near the track has been softened by the current hot weather and although it is having no impact on the safe running of the tram network, we appreciate it may look concerning to customers. “Our engineers are on site and, as is standard procedure, they are applying sand to mitigate the effect of the heat.”

Elsewhere, pupils were sent home from a school in East Yorkshire after refusing to wear blazers as temperatures soared past 86F (30C). Kingswood Academy in Hull said the children were defiant over their uniforms, but parents complained that teachers had put their health at risk.

Allergy charities also warned that the hot weather could trigger fatal attacks and said sufferers should stay away from rural areas and avoid leaving windows open at night and early in the morning when pollen counts were at their highest.