Scared about the heat

As I said, my reply was meant for someone else, I’m really sorry. My screen reader struggles with this forum when threads start to get long

I wouldnt be too alarmed about whats happening. Sounds like what happened in 1540 was a lot worse.

Couple of days in front of the fan watching TV and it will all be back to normal :-)

1540 European drought - Wikipedia

I agree with you. I'm not minimising or normalising what is happening - I'm simply replying to the original post from someone who was anxious about getting through the next two days.

Apologies, that reply was meant for @Caelus

But what’s happening now is not natural. The Earth’s climate has warmed in line with industrialisation and human activity, and now there are wildfires in ancient forests, people are losing things essential for survival. We can’t simply let it happen

it happens, it always does happen no matter what we do... if we try to stop that and make earth still and no longer changing, we would be damaging earth that way and all life on earth will die because we thought we knew better and thought we could "fix" the earth instead of letting it do whatever it does naturally..

I'm sure you'll be fine if you take sensible precautions, like those you mentioned. As I understand it, the main issues which make people more likely to get ill are underlying vulnerabilities, water safety incidents, dehydration, and the impact of travel delays. If you stay at home, keep hydrated, I'm sure you'll be fine.

Yes I totally agree with you, it's different on holiday as you don't have to go to work etc. I am actually complaining myself. I really don't like such hot weather, I much prefer cool. Stick me up on a drizzly moor in the wind any day of the week!

I know what you mean but I presumed that the people who go on holiday for the hot weather are enjoying this heatwave and the people who are complaining are people who wouldn't go on holiday somewhere warm? I most certainly would not go abroad "for the weather" unless it was to escape to somewhere isolated with a nice cold grey fog! I suppose also, some people might go abroad to a beach resort and stay somewhere with air conditioning and a swimming pool etc where they walk around in swimming costumes and drink lots of iced drinks... but here they might be in the middle of a polluted city and stuck in top floor flats or offices in buildings that were not designed for the warm weather? 

You say that it’s the vulnerable who may be unwell, but in reality,  there are still many people who will think it’s a good opportunity to lay outside in full sun to get that perfect tan….. You know what the British public is like. I’m quite tired of seeing people walk by with bright red shoulders, backs and faces, and they still don’t use a cover up or t shirt to protect themselves…

Is this typical Britain!?  Everyone goes abroad on holiday "for the weather" but as soon as we get it here everyone's complaining! 

Is there a way you can cover your windows whilst the sun is on them? Also, can you fill up some things with water so that you will have enough to keep you going if there is a power outage?

I'm worried. I don't do especially well in hot weather, I have sensory problems and can never keep cool. I drink enough but still can't stay cool. We were due 38c but this morning it says 34c for tomorrow so I'm hoping it'll be more around that level.

I think if we stay in and avoid being out in it then it should be ok. I imagine the warnings are for vulnerable people and people who go out to beaches. They'll be affected for sure if they do that. I think if we stay in, keep fans on and well hydrated then we should be fine.

I live in a south-facing flat with floor to ceiling windows and an electric pump delivering water (i.e. if there's a power outage I have no water). Yes I'm worried.

I am glad the air quality is good where you are, that will help so much. I am a few miles out of the city centre too, so the air should be nice but for some reason everyone seems to think that seeing as we are having a heatwave it is a good idea to make huge bonfires and burn everything they don't want in their garden. So, it is very smoky outside now and I don't think I will be able to open the windows tonight! 

Having said that, if you continue to struggle to breathe, you should ring NHS 111 for advice without waiting for a pulse oximeter to arrive!

The only good thing is the lack of pollution in the atmosphere at the present time and I am a few miles away from the city centre.

I remember many years ago in the early 1990s when I worked in central Manchester.  The heat was awful and the pollution made it so much worse.  As soon as I got out of the city centre my breathing problems eased.

I would suggest that you try and order one from Amazon that can arrive by next day delivery if you can. This is what I would do if I was in your situation at least. I ordered one for my grandma when she caught Covid-19. It turned out that she was just fine and recovered relatively quickly but it gave us peace of mind that she could monitor her oxygen levels at home. If you can monitor your blood oxygen yourself then you will know if the levels are dropping and when you should seek medical attention. I have heard of a phenomenon called "happy hypoxia" where people's oxygen levels drop dangerously low but they feel okay, are not experiencing respiratory distress and are not aware that they are in danger. It is better to receive oxygen therapy and treatment before it gets to this point.

I have nothing.

That is worrying, do you have a pulse oximeter at home to measure your blood oxygen saturation levels?