Extreme heat warning issued for the East of England

People flocked to Southend-on-Sea in Essex in July's extreme heat

The Met Office has issued an amber warning of extreme heat for the East of England.

It said the hot spell would develop across the region from Thursday to Sunday, with peak temperatures expected on Friday and Saturday.

The alert is the second to be issued in recent weeks, after extreme heat in July saw the UK exceed 40C (104F) for the first time.

The Met Office said conditions would be below those record highs.

But this heatwave could last longer, it said.

The amber alert "requires social and healthcare services to target specific actions at high-risk groups", but is one stage lower than the most serious level four red warning issued during last month's heatwave.

It has been issued for the whole of the East of England.

The amber warning has also been issued for the East Midlands, London and South East England, North West England, South West England, Wales, the West Midlands and Yorkshire and Humber.

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Last month, a number of fires broke out across the region during the hot weather.

Essex County Fire and Rescue Service was called out to 130 incidents and major incidents were declared in Norfolk, Suffolk and Hertfordshire, meaning fire services were having to tackle a high number of fires at once.

England had its driest July since 1935, according to the Met Office, and there have been calls for more hosepipe bans to be brought in, including from Environment Secretary George Eustice.