Britain’s summer was one of the hottest but wettest since records began, Met Office revealed

- September 4, 2019

- in Uk News

SUMMER was not only a scorcher — it was also one of the wettest.

The three months from June to August were Britain’s 12th warmest since records began in 1910, Met Office figures revealed.

Umbrellas appear all over Glasgow, Scotland, as it rained again on Tuesday

But while hot summers tend to be drier, this summer was the seventh wettest recorded for the UK as a whole.

Tim Legg, of the Met Office’s National Climate Information Centre, said: “The picture for each of the three months was different depending on where you were in the UK.

“Southern England and Wales endured the heaviest rainfall in June, whereas Scotland and northernmost parts of England saw the heaviest rainfall in August.”

The figures show the average temperature across Britain was 15.2C (59.36F) or 0.8C above the long-term average for 1981 to 2010. Sunshine figures were close to average — with Kent the sunniest county.

It enjoyed 736 hours of sunny weather or 116 per cent of the expected amount.

Summer heat peaked on July 25 with a record high of 38.7C (101.66F) at Cambridge University Botanic Garden.

But rain was never far away and Cheshire, Northumberland and Derbyshire sploshed through the wettest weather when compared with their average rainfalls for 1981 to 2010.

Cheshire had 179 per cent of its average rainfall for the season, while Northumberland had 174 per cent.

In Derbyshire, where residents had to be evacuated from Whaley Bridge over fears a dam could collapse following heavy rain, the figure was 173 per cent.

Scotland had its second wettest summer, surpassed only by 1985.

Summer 2019 saw its hottest day on July 25 with a record-breaking 38.7C in Cambridge[/caption]

Gyllyngvase beach, Falmouth, Cornwall, where Freya Wilkes, nine, from Kent, made the most of the August Bank Holiday heatwave[/caption]

August 26 saw beachgoers flock to the seaside of Lyme Regis, Dorset, to bask in the scorching sunshine and record-breaking temperatures[/caption]

Water being pumped into the sluice channel (left) at Toddbrook Reservoir near the village of Whaley Bridge, Derbyshire, after it was damaged in heavy rainfall on August 5[/caption]