Amber heat alert extended for south east England

A Met Office amber warning for extreme heat in south east England has been extended until 09:00 BST on Sunday.

Ending a run of record-breaking heat, the weather service says cooler air is set to arrive by the second half of the weekend in the west, but slightly later than expected in other parts of the country.

It comes as temperatures in the South East and East Anglia on Saturday once again hit the high 20s or low 30s Celsius , with another hot and humid night expected before things become more manageable.

A rare red heat warning had previously been in force for three consecutive days, coming to a close at 21:00 BST on Friday.

Met Office chief forecaster Andy Page said: "The UK is seeing a gradual shift in conditions over the weekend, with those to the south east of England retaining the warmth the longest.

"There an amber extreme heat warning will remain in force, though peaks are more likely to be in the low 30s Celsius."

That means Sunday will officially mark the end of the heatwave for all of us.

The hot spell saw temperatures exceed 36C in some places, with Friday confirmed by the Met Office as having been the UK's hottest June day on record.

The extreme conditions saw road and rail passengers urged to avoid non-essential travel, while schools and nurseries were forced to close.

A hosepipe ban was also been brought in for South East Water customers in Kent.

Meanwhile, on Saturday, hundreds of flights at both Gatwick and London's Heathrow were also been delayed, many due to thunderstorms, with disruption expected to continue overnight.

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