Heatwave hell: are soaring temperatures the new normal? – The Latest

Summary

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Summary: Heatwave Hell – Are Soaring Temperatures the New Normal?

Podcast: Today in Focus (The Latest)
Host: Lucy Hoffwell
Guest: Helena Horton (Guardian Environment Reporter)
Date: May 25, 2026
Length: ≈10 minutes

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Episode Overview

This episode tackles the unprecedented record-breaking May heatwave in the UK and Europe, exploring whether such extreme temperatures are now the new normal as a result of climate change. Host Lucy Hoffwell speaks with Helena Horton, an experienced environment reporter, about the causes, impacts, and adaptation challenges presented by this scorching early summer, including the looming risks of El Niño, infrastructural unpreparedness, and what future heatwaves could mean for British society.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Unprecedented May Temperatures in the UK

• London and much of England recorded overnight temperatures near 20°C—highly unusual for May ([01:48]).
• Record highs: Many places hit over 30°C, officially constituting a "heatwave" (three consecutive days above 27–28°C) in the southeast and south of England.
• Comparisons: These temperatures are more typical in August, not May, and the long evenings keep buildings hot for longer ([01:48–02:28]).

“If you did find it hard to sleep, these are temperatures we’d normally have in August… Just very uncomfortable and… we’re about to hit 35 in May today, according to the Met Office, and that’s a staggering 2.2°C above the record.”
— Helena Horton [03:01]

2. European Context: A Regional Heat Dome

• Northern Europe, including France, is experiencing similar extremes, caused by a "pressure system sucking in hot air from Africa," resulting in a "heat dome" that’s expected to persist ([02:34–02:48]).

3. Climate Change and El Niño: What’s Behind the Weather?

• Climate change is driving more frequent and severe heat records.
• El Niño: While not the immediate cause of this heatwave, a major (possibly "super") El Niño is forming and could further amplify heat extremes in the coming year ([03:01, 08:04]).

“Every year, we're experiencing record-breaking heat. Pretty much, it's accelerating… for the first time, we’re about to hit 35 in May today, according to the Met Office, and that’s a staggering 2.2°C above the record… absolutely unprecedented.”
— Helena Horton [03:01]

4. Increased Risk to Life and Lack of Preparedness

• High health risks for the elderly, vulnerable populations, young people, and those in poorly ventilated or crowded housing ([04:05–04:20]).
• British homes and infrastructure—built to retain heat and largely without air conditioning—are ill-equipped to cope with sustained hot weather.
• Vulnerability is especially acute for people with low incomes, existing health issues, or living in urban heat islands.

“Our homes aren't built for these temperatures… everything is built to retain heat because we're used to being a relatively cold, mild country…”
— Helena Horton [04:20]

• Wildlife is also suffering: ponds drying up, loss of habitat; suggestion for listeners to leave shallow water dishes outside for local fauna ([04:20]).

5. Infrastructure Under Strain

• Railways: Tracks are only engineered to withstand up to 27°C, risking buckling in current heat ([05:38]).
• Roads: UK tarmac lacks the polymers used in hotter countries, making roads vulnerable to melting ([05:38–06:32]).

“Our rail tracks… are stress-tested up to 27°C… that was reasonable because that was pretty much the average hot summer temperature that we got… now it’s looking less reasonable.”
— Helena Horton [05:38]

6. The Air Conditioning Dilemma & Solutions

• Few homes have air conditioning; many people are searching for units as a quick fix ([06:32]).
• Environmental impact: Widespread use of traditional air conditioning could strain the electrical grid and worsen emissions, especially as the UK isn’t yet fully reliant on renewables ([06:32–07:47]).
• Potential solution: Government promotion and grants for heat pumps that both heat and cool homes; such systems are more environmentally friendly.
• Equity concerns: Access to cooling technologies may widen disparities ([06:32–07:15]).

“You can actually buy heat pumps that both heat and cool your house… the government should be funding retrofitting of these in old people's homes and potentially also schools.”
— Helena Horton [07:16]

7. What’s Next: The El Niño Threat

• El Niño: Expected to peak at the end of the year, likely bringing even hotter summers and compounding effects into 2027. The current heat might be a “prelude” to more extreme years ([08:04–09:18]).
• Feedback loops: Hotter seas store and release more heat, amplifying future episodes ([08:04–09:01]).

“It’s projected to be a super El Niño at the end of the year… if it does come to pass, will be actually summer of 2027. So next summer, if the El Niño hits, we’re likely to have a very hot summer next year.”
— Helena Horton [08:16]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “It was just nearly 20 degrees in London last night. Actually, we’ve never had that in May before… These are temperatures we’d normally have in August.”
  — Helena Horton [01:48]

• “Every year, we're experiencing record-breaking heat. Pretty much, it's accelerating…”
  — Helena Horton [03:01]

• “Our country just isn’t prepared for this level of heat. Every piece of our infrastructure… all of our homes, they're not prepared for it. Because why would you prepare for something that never happened really before or only happened occasionally, but now it's happening all the time.”
  — Helena Horton [04:20]

• “The tarmac on the roads also melts because other countries, they mix in polymers and plastics into their tarmac to reinforce it… We haven’t done that, so we haven’t had to. So why would we spend money doing it when it didn’t happen before?”
  — Helena Horton [05:38]

• “I wouldn’t say that air conditioning itself is bad for the environment always… the government is trying to get us to invest in heat pumps for our homes. You can actually buy heat pumps that both heat and cool your house.”
  — Helena Horton [07:00–07:16]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• UK records hottest May day: [01:03–01:48]
• Heatwave officially declared: [01:48–02:28]
• Situation across Europe: [02:28–02:48]
• Climate change, El Niño explained: [02:48–03:01]
• Record-breaking, unprecedented heat: [03:01–04:05]
• Risks to people and wildlife: [04:05–05:22]
• Infrastructural vulnerabilities (rail/road): [05:22–06:32]
• Air conditioning and heat pump debate: [06:32–07:47]
• El Niño outlook, feedback loops: [08:04–09:18]
• Closing takeaways: [09:18–09:24]

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Conclusion & Takeaways

The episode underlines that extreme heat events, even in typically temperate regions like the UK, are rapidly becoming normalized as a result of climate change, and that infrastructure, public health, and social policy must adapt swiftly. The emergence of El Niño will likely exacerbate the crisis further, making long-term solutions—especially in building standards, renewable energy integration, and social safety nets—an urgent priority.

Final thought:

“It sounds like we’ve got to adapt to this weather that is here to stay.”
— Lucy Hoffwell [09:18]

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Further information:

• Stay up to date with Helena Horton’s environment reporting at theguardian.com.
• Watch for episodes of ‘The Latest’ each evening for continued coverage.

Transcript

[Guardian Announcer]

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[Helena Horton]

Every year we're experiencing record breaking heat. Pretty much our country just isn't prepared for this level of heat. There's also a phenomenon happening called El Nino. It turbocharges heat waves. It's predicted to be a super El Nino. If the El Nino hits, we're likely to have very hot summer next year.

[Lucy Hoffwell]

The UK has recorded the hottest day on record in May as an early heat wave engulfs Europe and serves as a reminder of how the climate crisis is affecting lives. From the Guardians today In focus. This is the latest with me, Lucy Half well, joining me is Helena Horton, Guardian reporter, previously an environment reporter, so well qualified to help us understand this heat wave, these unprecedented temperatures recorded for May. I don't know about you, Helena, but I was tossing and turning all night. We close to a tropical night in London where temperatures don't dip below 20 degrees, but that was narrowly averted. But nonetheless, there have been record temperatures recorded in London, but also around the country. Can you give me a sense of how hot it's been?

[Helena Horton]

Well, it was record overnight, so it's very, very rare that we get anything up to 20 degrees. It was just nearly 20 degrees in London last night. Actually. We've never had that in May before. So if you did find it hard to sleep, these are temperatures we'd normally have in August and obviously in May we have quite long evenings, so it takes longer for the house to cool down. It's just very uncomfortable and yes, but over the weekend we've had temperatures hitting over 30 degrees across the country, across England, and it's officially a heat wave in parts of the southeast of England and the south in general. So that's when you have more than three days over 27 or 28 degrees, depending on where you are.

[Lucy Hoffwell]

And what's the picture across Europe? Is Europe experiencing the same type of extreme haste as we are?

[Helena Horton]

Yes, Northern Europe. So France is also baking at the moment. We're stuck in a pressure system which is sucking in hot air from Africa. So we have this kind of heat dome over us at the moment. It's going to take a while to dissipate up until the end of next week.

[Lucy Hoffwell]

Global heating and climate change must be a major factor in all of this. But is there a specific phenomenon as well that's occurring that presumably is caused or worsened by climate change?

[Helena Horton]

Not at the moment. So there is an El Nino coming up at the end of the year. It's a weather phenomenon that's caused by the Pacific Ocean heating and then that changes the jet stream and the way that it impacts weather events. So it turbocharges heat waves and sometimes other things like rainfall or drought. We've only had temperatures over 30 degrees in May eight times since the early 1900s. Every year we're experiencing record breaking heat. Pretty much it's accelerating. I'm sure you probably remember when we were younger, it would be extremely Rare to have 30 degree days, even in August. And now we're having them earlier and earlier. And now for the first time, we're about to hit 35 in May today, according to the Met Office, and that's a staggering 2.2 degrees Celsius above the record. And normally records are only beaten by a fraction of a degree. So to beat it by 2 degrees, which looks like it's going to happen today, it's already getting really hot, is absolutely unprecedented. And forecasters are very surprised that it's happening.

[Lucy Hoffwell]

Yeah. And all sorts of weather warnings have been issued for various parts of the country, for Europe as well. And this type of heat can be extremely dangerous for the old, the vulnerable, for young people. How great is that risk to life this week?

[Helena Horton]

It's pretty high. I mean, I've seen some Americans online commenting saying, oh, it's only 30 degrees Celsius. We get, we have that every day. The difference is our homes aren't built for these temperatures. Yeah, they're built of brick a lot of the time. They're built to retain heat because we're used to being relatively cold, mild country and we don't have air conditioning. So that means in old people's homes, in schools, in overcrowded flats in London, across the country, whether you have people on lower incomes, they're the ones who are most at risk of heat stress and not often people who are already vulnerable and already have health conditions. So it's very concerning. And our country just isn't prepared for this level of heat. Every piece of our infrastructure, all of our homes, they're not prepared for it. Because why would you prepare for something that never happened really before or only happened occasionally, but now it's happening all the time. And for wildlife of Course too, we're seeing ponds drying up. If people have a garden or a front garden and they could put some. A dish of water out, a shallow dish of water out for local wildlife, that probably would be very helpful.

[Lucy Hoffwell]

I mean, you're right about the infrastructure just being not built to handle this type of weather. I mean, we're going to have to look to Southern Europe and other countries to sort of learn from them because it feels like the infrastructure, rail networks just collapse as we reach this type of heat.

[Helena Horton]

Yes. Our rail tracks, let's stress test up to 27 degrees Celsius because that's. And that was reasonable because that was pretty much the average hot summer temperature that we got. And that means that they're not reinforced in the same way that rail tracks are in other countries that are hotter, because if you reinforce them too much, you end up having issues when it gets cold below freezing. And so basically, we're in the happy medium at the moment because we have them so they don't buckle under the heat. Well, the heat that we used to get. And they also don't shatter in winter. But now we might have to look at how we can make them more resilient. The tarmac on the roads also melts because other countries, they mix in polymers and plastics into their tarmac to reinforce it, to make sure it doesn't melt in the same way it does here. We haven't done that, so we haven't had to. So why would we spend money doing it when it didn't happen before? It was reasonable at the time, but now it's looking less reasonable.

[Lucy Hoffwell]

Yeah. And so you spoke about how ill equipped our homes are, but, you know, in the UK we don't have air conditioning units as is kind of standard in the US and that is going to be a huge problem. I'm sure many people have been googling air conditioning units over the weekend as we kind of try to endure these astronomic conditions, but they themselves are really damaging to the environment as well. Right. And of course, it creates a wealth disparity about those who can afford to invest in such technology and those who can't.

[Helena Horton]

Yes. I wouldn't say that air conditioning itself is bad for the environment always. So the government is trying to get us to invest in heat pumps for our homes. You can actually buy heat pumps that both heat and cool your house. They have the same technology in them as a fridge.

[Lucy Hoffwell]

Okay.

[Helena Horton]

And at the moment, the grants only really apply to the ones that heat your home. I think that they should be applying to the ones that cool your home, too. And that the government should be funding retrofitting of these in old people's homes and potentially also schools. But you're right, I mean, it does put pressure on the grid. We haven't switched over to renewable energy for all of our electricity yet. We actually see in America that areas where they have heat waves, the grid often have blackouts or brownouts, they call it, because there's too much demand on the grid due to the amount of people turning on their aircon.

[Lucy Hoffwell]

Right.

[Helena Horton]

Actually, they've managed to sort that out in some states with solar power because obviously when it's hot and sunny, you have more solar power. So. Yeah. So I guess we need more renewables and it'd be great if we could have those heat pumps installed that both heat and cool our homes.

[Lucy Hoffwell]

And you mentioned the El Nino that is coming at the end of the year. I'm troubled here that it's not already here. So does that mean more heat waves at this intensity to come over the course of the summer and into next year?

[Helena Horton]

Well, the Met Office do think we are likely to have a hot summer because we normally reach our peak temperatures at the end of July, start of August. So it probably will be potentially hotter than this, at least as hot as this at that time of year. It's projected to be a super El Nino at the end of the year, starting in summer and going on right into next year. So actually the full effect, if it does come to pass, it's about 60%, last time I checked. If it does come to pass, will be in actually summer of 2027. So next summer, if the El Nino hits, we're likely to have very hot summer next year. But this year it will start to have effect. Also, just the very fact of having this kind of extreme heat over Europe makes it more likely to keep compounding because it heats the. The seas and the oceans.

[Lucy Hoffwell]

Right.

[Helena Horton]

And they're our biggest store that they store and release heat. So when you, when they get too hot, they then start to have a feedback loop where they release more heat, make it hotter outside, then the ocean gets hotter, and then you'll have. You have this feedback loop. So, yes, it is likely we're going to have a hot summer and El Nino will have a part to play, particularly into next year.

[Lucy Hoffwell]

Okay, so it sounds like we've got to adapt to this weather that is here to stay. Thank you so much, Helena, for your time.

[Helena Horton]

Thank you.

[Lucy Hoffwell]

That's it for today. My huge thanks again to Helena Horton, Guardian reporter You can keep up with her reporting [e-mail] and don't miss today's episode of our sister podcast, Politics Weekly. Pippa Carreira and Kieran Stacy will be answering listener questions as Parliament takes recess. Thanks for listening to this episode of the latest Today in Focus. We'll be back in your feeds as usual tomorrow morning. The latest will be back tomorrow night. This episode was presented by me, Lucy Hoff. It was produced by Nada Smlyunich. The senior producer was Ryan Ramgobin and the lead producer was Zoe Hitch.

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