As the United Kingdom braces for what may be the hottest temperatures ever recorded, the already oppressive heat wave forced airports and railways to disrupt service Monday.
Airports and railways across the country were forced to cease or interrupt operations as temperatures climbed above 100 degrees Fahrenheit, inching dangerously close to the hottest temperature ever recorded there in 2019. The transit systems in place, officials explained, were simply not designed to sustain such hot weather, which is rare in the typically mild U.K. climate.
Luton Airport outside of London, which serves nearly 20 million passengers a year, suspended flights Monday after a “surface defect was identified on the runway” after high temperatures caused a section of the runway to lift up. Service resumed in the evening around 6 p.m. local time after engineers made repairs.
The U.K. Ministry of Defence said its Brize Norton Royal Air Force base in Oxfordshire, the air force’s largest air station, was relying on alternative airfields due to the extreme heat, which may surpass 104 degrees Fahrenheit, officials warned.
Railway providers across the country urged people to only use their services if absolutely necessary, with some shutting down routes all together. Network Rail, which owns and manages most of the country’s railway network, announced Monday it would be closing all routes on the East Coast Main Line between London King’s Cross and York and Leeds through Tuesday. That’s a span of about 200 miles.
The extreme heat can cause kinks in the tracks, Network Rail explained, tweeting out images of that happening in one spot in London where the metal tracks sizzled to over 118 degrees Fahrenheit.
Network Rail has been painting some tracks white to deflect the heat, which is expected to continue at least through Tuesday.
Still, even with those adjustments, Network Rail officials warned that two-hour rides may end up being four for some passengers.
On Friday, U.K. weather service officials issued a “Red flag” warning for the first time, denoting serious health risks for anyone overexposed to the heat.
“Here in the U.K., we’re used to treating hot spells as a chance to go and play in the sun,” Penny Endersby, the chief executive of the U.K. Met Office, the country’s weather service, said in a video message. “This is not that sort of weather. Our lifestyles and our infrastructure are not adapted to what is coming.”