HEATWAVE continues to bake Britons as deaths were being reported across the country during England's hottest weekend this year so far. A man collapsed and died while playing cricket in the extreme heat while four people have reportedly drowned in separate incidents.
Maqsood Anwar, 44, died on the pitch at Sully Centurions in the Vale of Glamorgan on Saturday (17) after suffering from chest pain and dizziness. It is thought the dad-of-three, who had diabetes, had a heart attack on what was one of the hottest days of the summer in Britain.
After bowling for eight hours, Anwar started feeling chest pain and dizziness which he thought he was feeling due to the heat, his friend told Mirror, along with a tingling feeling in his arm. He even resisted calling ambulance, thinking he was suffering from heatstroke.
He went to sit on the sidelines where fellow players urged him to call an ambulance and doused him in water to cool him down but he collapsed.
The air ambulance and paramedics arrived at the scene but were unable to save the gas engineer after 45 minutes of treatment.
Parts of Britain have seen temperatures soar as high as 88F.
Four people also died in separate drowning incidents across England as the country experienced the hottest weekend of the year so far.
Deaths have been reported from Greater Manchester and Oxfordshire on Sunday (18), along with another man in his 50s in North Yorkshire. Cumbria Police also found the body of a teenage boy after he was reported missing shortly after entering the River Eden at around 9pm.
A general view of a sign warning of a risk of drowning near Hammersmith Bridge on July 17, 2021 in Hammersmith, England. (Photo by Hollie Adams/Getty Images)
Sunday (19) became the hottest day of the year so far for both England and Wales with temperatures of 86F (30.2C) recorded in Cardiff and 88F (31.6C) at London's Heathrow Airport.
The summer heat tempted thousands of swimmers to cool off in the sea, a lake, or other waterways, however experts have urged caution.
The Canal and Rivers Trust "strongly advised" against going into water, as "there are too many risks that you can't see hidden below the surface".
Meanwhile, there has been a surge in children in hospital getting treated for extreme sunburn, said media reports.
“Our burns centre has been treating a lot of children with serious sunburn and staff fear a further surge in cases in the coming days,” the Swansea Bay University health board said in a statement. “Please remember to be sun safe. Just a few minutes applying a high-factor sunscreen could save you and your child a lot of pain and suffering.”
Public health authorities issued a call for people to keep an eye on anyone at risk from high temperatures, including older people, those with underlying health conditions and young children.
“Dry, very warm or hot” conditions are expected to last into the week.
Zia Yusuf
Sunak with Boris Johnson
Sunak with Suella Braverman