THE UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has issued a heat health alert for the south west of England.

Both Somerset and Devon are encompassed by the yellow alert, which is set to run until Thursday, June 27, at 5pm.

Temperatures in Pilton, the home of Glastonbury Festival, are forecast to reach 27 degrees on Wednesday afternoon, matching the forecast for Tenerife, in Spain, which is also predicted to hit 27 degrees.

In Devon, Exmouth is forecast to reach a high of 21 degrees on Wednesday.

UKHSA, in partnership with the Met Office, say that minor impacts are probable across the health and social care sector - these include:

  • "Increased use of healthcare services by the vulnerable population."
  • "Increase in risk of mortality amongst vulnerable individuals and increased potential for indoor environments to become very warm."

A spokesperson for the Met Office explained: "Yellow alerts may be issued during periods of heat which would be unlikely to impact most people, but those you are particularly vulnerable (E.g. the elderly with multiple health conditions and on multiple medications) and are likely to struggle to cope and where action is required within the health and social care sector specifically.

"A yellow alert may also be issued if the confidence in the weather forecast is low, but there could be more significant impacts if the worst-case scenario is realised.

"In this situation the alert may be upgraded as the confidence in both the weather forecast and the likelihood of observing those impacts improves."