London

The Met Office of the United Kingdom (UK), the country's national weather service, on Friday issued a red warning for extreme heat, the highest-level alert, that covers parts of England for next Monday and Tuesday.

The alert, issued for the first time ever, is an upgrade from an amber warning that had earlier been put in place until the end of Tuesday.

The highest temperature recorded in the UK so far was 38.7 degrees Celsius in July 2019.

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The United Kingdom is currently in the grip of a heatwave

The Met Office said it expects "population-wide adverse health effects, not limited to those most vulnerable to extreme heat, leading to serious illness or danger to life."