Scottish Government’s resilience operation activated.
The Scottish Government Resilience Room (SGoRR) remains in operation as the Met Office Amber warning of extreme heat extends to more parts of Scotland next week.
The warning has been extended further northeast to Dundee.
This means that all of Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife, Perth, Clackmannanshire, Falkirk and eastern parts of Lanarkshire are all now included in the warning, as well as the Scottish Borders and Dumfries and Galloway.
The warning is valid from 00.00 on Monday 18 July to 23.59 on Tue 19 July.
Red warnings are in place for other areas of the UK.
Justice Secretary Keith Brown, lead Minister for resilience, attended a Cabinet Office Briefing Room (COBR) meeting chaired by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Mr Malthouse, on the extreme heat warning, on Saturday 16 July.
Mr Brown said:
“We are aware of the extension to the weather warnings currently in place and are receiving regular updates from partners including the Met Office and emergency services.
“Our resilience arrangements have been activated and stand ready at all times to coordinate a response to severe weather issues where required.
“We will continue to closely monitor developments.
“When temperatures increase, it’s important to monitor forecasts and follow public health advice, including staying hydrated and drinking plenty of fluids and avoiding excess alcohol.
“I would also urge people to look out for vulnerable family, friends and neighbours, as older people, those with underlying conditions and those living alone may struggle to keep cool and hydrated.
“Water safety incidents and drownings increase in hot weather and people should be aware of the dangers and use supervised beaches and pools when possible – follow the Water Safety Code and in an emergency call 999.
“If you are planning on travelling to the areas covered by the Red warning, you should be prepared for significant disruption, and may want to consider delaying your travel.
“If you decide to travel, you should prepare appropriately, and keep-up to date with travel alerts.”
