UK weather: Teenager dies in canal as 13 drown during heatwave

Emergency services urge caution as people take to the sea and waterways during the hot weather

Gareth Davies, Breaking News Editor and Max Stephens 21 July 2021 • 11:57am

Two women on their paddleboards watching the sun set off the coast of Anglesey Credit: Rob Formstone for The Telegraph

The number of people who have drowned during the UK heatwave has reached 13 after a 15-year-old boy was pulled from a canal.

Police were called to Stocking Lane in Knottingley, West Yorkshire, at 5.28pm on Tuesday and recovered the body of the teenager, who was pronounced dead at the scene.

The boy's death happened on the hottest day of the year so far as the temperature reached 32.2C (89.96F) at Heathrow Airport in west London on Tuesday afternoon.

A man also died after being pulled from the water at Crosby beach in Merseyside on Monday night.

Emergency services have urged people to treat water with caution when they take to the country's rivers, seas, lakes and canals to cool off in the hot weather.

Amid the heatwave there have also been flood warnings as thunderstorms, some of which brought with them enormous hailstones, struck across parts of the UK on Tuesday night.

The UK heatwave, in pictures

Serpentine swimmer — An early-morning swimmer at The Serpentine lake in London's Hyde Park on Wednesday Credit: Peter Nicholls/REUTERS

A woman walks along Victoria Park, east London as thundery shower begins after hot days — A woman walks along Victoria Park, east London, during a thundery shower on Tuesday Credit: Marcin Nowak/LNP

The 13 people who have drowned during the heatwave

Sixteen-year-old Mohammad Abdul Hamid, known as Hamid, died after getting into difficulties in the River Eden at Rickerby Park in Carlisle on Saturday.
Another holidaymaker swimming in the sea near Blackpool, Lanchshire on Saturday drowned after "accidentally getting out of his depth".
Aspiring footballer Ngapee Merenga, 19, drowned after diving into water near Salford Quays on Sunday.
In York, the body of a man in his 50s was recovered from the River Ouse, close to the Water End Bridge, on Sunday evening.
On Sunday, a teenage girl drowned in an Oxfordshire lake. Thames Valley police revealed they were called to Ducklington Lake, in Witney at around 2.35pm. Despite being taken to hospital she passed away shortly after.
On Sunday, a man's body was recovered from water in a disused quarry in Dove Holes, Buxton, Derbyshire, just before 11pm.
Later that day, emergency crews discovered a body in the lake in Crookes Valley Park, South Yorks, at 7.30pm. South Yorkshire Police said an underwater search team recovered the body of the man in his 20s just before midnight.
Devon and Cornwall Police have confirmed a woman in her 60s was recovered from the water at Axmouth Harbour on Sunday.
On Monday, a body in Pugneys Country park, Wakefield was discovered after a man swimming on an inflatable unicorn was reported missing. Witnesses said the missing bather entered the water with the blow-up toy despite "no swimming" notices. A police statement issued on Monday afternoon read: "Enquiries are now ongoing to identify the deceased, but it is believed that this is the same male who was reported to be in difficulty in the water at about 1.15pm yesterday.
Cheshire Constabulary have confirmed that a body of a 16-year-old was recovered from the River Weaver at around 11.30am on Tuesday.
On Tuesday evening, the body of a 15-year-old boy was found in a canal in West Yorkshire. Emergency services pulled the teenager from the water in Stocking Lane, Knottingley.
In Merseyside a man died after being pulled from the sea, following a large rescue operation. Five men, at least three in their 20s, got into difficulties at Crosby beach shortly after 19:00 BST on Tuesday. Three of them were taken to hospital but one died a short time later, said Merseyside Police.
Derbyshire Police today confirmed that the body of a 15-year-old boy had been pulled from the River Trent. A force spokesman said: "Specialist teams from Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire Police and Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service carried out extensive search and rescue efforts, but sadly the boy's body was recovered from the water just after 11.30am.

What is the forecast for the rest of the week?

The Met Office said that temperatures are expected to reach 30C (86F) across southern and western England and 25C (77F) in Belfast.

The previous high for the year was 31.6C (88.88F), which was also recorded at Heathrow on Sunday.

Public Health England has extended its heat-health warning, which warns people to take measures to stay cool and look out for vulnerable people, until Friday.

Scattered thunderstorms are forecast to return across the country's east but are not expected to be as serious as the downpours that saturated south-eastern and central England on Tuesday.

Sun melts roads

Local authorities have reported having to carry out urgent repairs to roads which have melted in the heat.

Gloucestershire Council Council said that "emergency work" has been carried out on the A38 in Tewkesbury to repair damage caused by the current heatwave.

Somerset County Council said on Twitter that a number of roads had been affected by the heat and that a sunny day with temperatures of around 20C can be enough to heat the roads to 50C.

It added: "The blistering heat has caused some roads to melt (yes, melt). We are doing all we can to protect the roads.

"We will continue to monitor the situation over the next few days.

"A sunny day in the 20Cs can be enough to generate 50C on the ground as the dark asphalt road surface absorbs a lot of heat and this builds up during the day with the hottest period between noon and 5pm."