Hottest day of year so far as heatwave grips Europe

Loch Lomdon was perfect for watersports.

The record temperature was recorded in mid-afternoon in Balnacra in Wester Ross and Fort Augustus in the Highlands as the late June heatwave continued, surpassing the previous high of 25.8C set at Kinlochewe in the Highlands last month.

While temperatures are set to soar above the 30C mark down south today, the Met Office said the opposite will be true in Scotland.

Forecasters said conditions will continue to be “very warm”, with haar clearing to form a bright day with sunny spells. Temperatures across parts of the east coast are expected to peak at 25C, with the chance of some heavy showers later in the day.

The Met Office said the west coast may also experience some heavy and thundery showers over the course of Saturday, with temperatures reaching 23C.

It will be bright and drier again in the east tomorrow, although conditions with be much cooler, with fresh winds and scattered showers and highs of around 18C.

Forecasters are also warning of outbreaks of heavy and persistent rain across swathes of the west coast.

While Scotland is set to cool down in the days ahead compared to England, where temperatures could reach a maximum of 34C in London today, those families setting off on summer holidays to Europe look set to swelter as a record-setting heatwave continues.

With temperatures in France hitting an all-time high of 45.8C yesterday, the French national weather service activated its highest-level heat danger alert for the first time.

The record, which surpassed the 44.1C set during a heatwave in 2003 that killed thousands, was measured in the southern town of Gallargues-le-Montueux.

Those French schools that stayed open moved classrooms into the shade outside, with teachers spraying pupils with water.

Italy put 16 cities under alerts for high temperatures.

Civil security services distributed water to tourists visiting sites around Rome under a scorching sun.

Heat was blamed for the deaths of two people in Spain. An 80-year-old man collapsed and died in the street in Valladolid. An 17-year-old boy also died in the southern city of Cordoba after diving into a swimming pool.

More than 600 firefighters in Catalonia battled the region’s worst fire in two decades.