Sweltering Londoners queue for HOURS at capital's lidos as temperatures soar towards 37C

Lidos across the capital have been exceptionally busy during the heatwave
SLSC Lido
Alexandra Richards26 July 2018

Sweltering Londoners battling soaring temperatures have faced hour-long queues to take a refreshing dip in the capital's packed lidos.

Photos posted on social media showed a long line of people waiting to get into the Tooting Bec lido at 10.45am on Thursday.

The mercury could soar to 37C topping the UK's previous July record of 36.7C recorded on July 1 2015.

South London Swimming Club's account said keen swimmers faced queues of up to an hour before they would be allowed in the water due to the amount of people craving a cooling dip.

Tooting Bec Lido warned customers that the facility was extremely busy and operating a "one in one out" system due to the ongoing heatwave.

A message posted on the pool's official Twitter account read: “Are you visiting us to cool down? Please note due to the warm weather we often reach full capacity and have to operate on a 1 in 1 out system. Please factor into your visit that there might be an unpreventable wait/queues for entry into the pool.”

Photos showed sweaty Brits queueing clutching inflatables and towels as they waited in the scorching heat to go for a swim at popular pools including London Fields, Brockwell Lido and at Tooting Bec.

Elsewhere in the capital people reported crowds at Crouch End lido and the North Finchley pool where families spent the early days of the summer holidays in queues up to two hours long.

Crowds were also reported at the Parliament Hill outdoor pool and at the Serpentine earlier in the month.

The Met Office said on Thursday that Friday could top the hottest day on record.

The highest temperture previously recorded in the UK is 38.5C on August 2003 in Faversham, Kent.

Londoners have been warned by MPs that the death toll from soaring temperatures was likely to be greater in the capital as it turns into an “urban heat island”.

The most vulnerable may be elderly people living at home, often alone, or in nursing and residential homes.

A Level 3 heat health watch alert covering a large part of England has been issued by the Met Office and Public Health England, warning people to stay out of the sun and keep their home as cool as possible.

The Standard has contacted Tooting Bec lido for further comment.

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