Amber extreme heat warning issued for Lancashire

The Met Office has placed Lancashire under an amber extreme heat warning from midnight on Wednesday 24 June until 11pm on Thursday, the Lancashire Resilience Forum reported. The warning covers Lancashire among other areas, and comes as a separate red alert covers parts of southern England and Wales, where temperatures are expected to reach between 38C and 40C¹.

Forecasters say very hot weather will continue across much of England and Wales until at least Thursday, with daytime temperatures widely expected to exceed 30C and the hottest areas potentially peaking around 38C to 40C within the red warning area. Overnight temperatures are unlikely to fall much lower than the high teens Celsius, and some places will not fall below the low 20s Celsius, accompanied by high humidity¹.

The Met Office has warned the heat could have significant impacts, including serious health risks, disruption to travel networks and increased pressure on essential services. Officials say population-wide health effects are likely, not only among vulnerable groups, with the potential for serious illness or danger to life. There are also concerns over possible failures of heat-sensitive infrastructure, including power, water, gas and mobile phone services¹.

Road users and rail passengers are warned to expect potential delays and cancellations. Emergency services are concerned about an increased risk of water-related incidents as more people head to beaches, rivers and lakes to cool down¹.

Why it matters for households

The warning applies to Lancashire households from midnight on Wednesday until 11pm on Thursday, with very hot conditions by day and little relief overnight. The Met Office says health effects are likely across the whole population, not only among groups usually considered vulnerable, and that power, water, gas and mobile phone services could fail in the heat. Travel disruption is possible on roads and rail¹. The heat-health alerts guide explains what the yellow, amber and red levels mean, and the Met Office weather warnings guide sets out how warnings are issued. The guide to who is most at risk in hot weather covers vulnerability in more detail.

Residents are being urged by the authorities to drink plenty of fluids, stay out of direct sunlight during the hottest part of the day and check on elderly relatives, neighbours and anyone with underlying health conditions. Anyone feeling unwell because of the heat, or concerned about somebody else, is advised to contact NHS 111¹. The Adverse Weather and Health Plan guide describes how services respond during heat alerts.

What happens next

The amber warning runs until 11pm on Thursday 24 June, and forecasters say very hot weather will continue across much of England and Wales until at least Thursday¹. No further warning updates beyond that period have been reported. Households can sign up for Met Office weather alerts and heat-health alerts, and the staying informed hub covers other official warning channels.