How Manchester Is Coping With the Record-Breaking Heatwave
How Manchester Is Coping With the Record-Breaking Heatwave — What the Data Shows
Thursday became the hottest June day ever recorded in the United Kingdom. The 36.7°C registered at Merryfield in Somerset was the headline figure, but the story reached well beyond the south coast. Here in Greater Manchester, temperatures hit 35°C on Friday — exceptional for this region — and the data coming out of emergency services, transport operators and public health bodies tells a story of a city under significant strain.
The temperatures in context
Manchester is not built for heat like this. Unlike parts of the south, the North West has historically been insulated from the worst of Britain’s heatwaves — a function of geography, latitude and the moderating influence of the Irish Sea. The Red Extreme Heat warning — the Met Office’s most serious alert level, issued only when there is a genuine risk to life — took effect from 9am on Wednesday 24 June and ran until 9pm on Thursday 25 June. Greater Manchester sat within the warning zone for the duration, with peak temperatures of 35°C recorded across the city — a figure that would have been considered extraordinary for this region as recently as a decade ago.
What it has done to emergency services
The strain on ambulance and emergency services has been severe. Nationally, ambulance trusts reported expecting a 50% increase in demand across the peak period, with a 16% rise in calls for patients fainting recorded even before the most extreme temperatures arrived on Wednesday and Thursday. Several hospitals declared critical incidents, with planned operations and outpatient appointments cancelled to free up capacity.
Ambulance trusts across the North West were operating under similar pressure. NHS chiefs urged people to use services wisely — calling 999 only in genuine emergencies and directing non-life-threatening needs toward NHS 111 online and local pharmacies.
Wildfires on the moors
One of the most visible consequences of the heatwave in Greater Manchester has been the wildfire risk on the moorland to the city’s north and east. Firefighters from Derbyshire and Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service have been tackling a wildfire on Tintwistle Moor in Glossop affecting an area of around 200 hectares.
GMFRS data shows there have been 83 wildfires across Greater Manchester since 2021, including a significant rise in 2025 when 38 incidents were recorded, and there have already been six wildfires in 2026. GMFRS Wildfire Lead Adrian Taylor warned that wildfires can spread rapidly during warm and dry weather, putting lives, wildlife and property at risk. The service issued an urgent plea for residents and visitors to take extra care on moorland and rural areas through its ‘Be Moor Aware’ campaign, coordinated with United Utilities, the RSPB and neighbouring fire and rescue services.
Transport disruption across the region
Transport for Greater Manchester urged passengers to reconsider journeys and prepare for disruption as extreme heat and the rare high-level weather warning coincided with one of the hottest weeks on record for the region.
On Metrolink, high rail and overhead line temperatures increased the risk of infrastructure faults, while prolonged sunshine raised in-carriage temperatures on busy services. Similar vulnerabilities affected heavy rail routes linking Manchester with Liverpool, Leeds and London, where lineside equipment and signalling were already operating near capacity.
Train operators recommended that customers avoid travelling on Thursday and Friday unless absolutely necessary, and confirmed that customers who chose not to travel could receive a fee-free refund — including on Advance tickets that would not normally be refundable. Drivers were advised to check tyres, fluid levels and air conditioning before travelling, and to carry water in case of breakdown.
Power supply under pressure
The heat placed the electricity grid under unusual strain. The National Energy System Operator issued an electricity margin notice for between 7pm and 10pm on Friday, asking for 700 megawatts of additional power generation as a buffer to cover an expected shortfall. This type of notice is rare and reflects the degree to which sustained extreme heat — particularly the combination of high temperatures and high overnight humidity — places every layer of infrastructure under simultaneous pressure.
Schools and open water
Schools and nurseries were forced to close across parts of the country as temperatures inside buildings became unsafe for children. Greater Manchester schools were among those taking precautionary measures, with some opting for early finish or full closure on Thursday.
The open water risk has been particularly acute. Emergency services have been dealing with incidents involving people entering rivers, lakes and reservoirs to cool down — an instinctive response that is consistently deadly. Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service echoed national warnings for the region’s reservoirs and moorland waterways, urging people to stay away from unsupervised bodies of water regardless of the heat.
What comes next
The current heatwave is driven by a heat-dome — a vast area of high pressure that stalls over a region and traps warm air, preventing it from dispersing. Scientists are clear that human-driven climate change is making events like this both more frequent and more intense.
The Red warning has now lifted, and temperatures across Greater Manchester are expected to ease through the weekend as high pressure gradually shifts eastward. A more unsettled pattern is forecast to return early next week — though the possibility of further thundery activity cannot be ruled out as the heat breaks down.
For those who have made it through the week, the data is a useful reminder that heatwaves in Britain are no longer rare anomalies. They are increasingly frequent, increasingly severe, and increasingly consequential for a city whose infrastructure, housing stock and emergency services were not designed with 35°C in mind.
