LONDON (Dagbladet): – We did not expect it to be so hot when we booked the trip in May. I thought it would be between 20 to 25 degrees, says Jan Erik Haglund to Dagbladet.
He is in London with his daughter Frida (13) and his wife Cecilie Sundby. They usually live on Tåsen in Oslo.
When Dagbladet talks to Haglund, the family is at a packed British Museum.
HOT AT THE MUSEUM: There are lots of people at the British Museum on Tuesday, says Jan Erik Haglund. Photo: Frank Karlsen / Dagbladet
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– It is full of people so it looks like it is completely normal conditions. There is no air conditioning here so it is hot.
Keeps closed
Many museums are closed in London on Tuesday and the British Museum closes earlier today due to the heat, the museum informs Dagbladet.
Tuesday is the hottest day ever recorded in the UK.
The British Meteorological Institute reports 40.2 degrees at London Heathrow Airport at 12.50 today.
HOT: Firefighters and men rest in the shade on the country’s hottest day ever. Photo: Frank Karlsen / Dagbladet
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The previous heat record in the UK was in 2019 when it was registered 38.7 degrees.
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– Eaten a lot of ice cream
On Monday, Haglund, his wife and daughter walked in Soho in central London. They were dependent on sitting in air-conditioned restaurants on a regular basis, he says.
– It is hot. There is nothing to say about it. Not so unlivable. We have eaten a lot of ice cream, drank water and taken cold showers, he says and adds:
– I have been to London a lot before and now it is exceptionally hot.
The family stays until Friday and is already looking forward to Wednesday when the temperature will drop.
– Get to taste the heat wave
– Long travel time
Another Norwegian family of four has also felt the heat wave on their bodies, but it is not the heat that was bad.
– The heat is as expected, but I did not think it would affect the public transport system so much. It may be a bit reminiscent of the first snow in Norway, as everything is chaos. It is hot, but not the worst we have been through, says June Henriksen to Dagbladet.
She is in London with her husband Espen and their two children Edvin (11) and Natalie (8). They are there from Monday to Thursday.
ON TOUR: The family of four went to “Harry Potter World” in the heat. Photo: private
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The family is on their way to “Harry Potter World” outside London. A trip that was initially 25 minutes took over an hour and a half.
– We were told that there was smoke development on the subway, at one point it stopped and we had to find another line, says Henriksen.
Killed birds: – Not common
– A lot of stress
Although the family is happy that they can travel as normal again after the corona pandemic, they would probably have needed a slightly calmer holiday now, says Henriksen.
SMOKE ON THE Tube: On Tuesday, the tube at Oxford Circus was closed due to smoke development. It must be because of the heat that the problem arose. Photo: Frank Karlsen / Dagbladet
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– There is a lot going on, there is war, a pandemic that is just over and we are used to the world being calmer. So there has been a lot of stress. What we needed now was another slightly quieter holiday. A trip to London is most of the fun we will do this year, in previous years we have traveled three weeks on interrail, she says.
The heat wave has ravaged Britain for the past week, and the country’s meteorological institute has extended the warning of danger to life and health when temperatures can rise to over 40 degrees in parts of the country.
DISAPPOINTMENT: A woman collapsed outside the subway in central London in connection with smoke development at one of the stations. She received help from health professionals. Photo: Frank Karlsen / Dagbladet
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The heat wave also creates problems for train traffic in the country. Transport Minister Grant Shapps fears that the train tracks will not withstand the extreme heat.
The UK is one of several European countries experiencing a heat wave now.
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