UK bracing for yet another heatwave - with chance of record-breaking temperatures

The UK is facing its fourth heatwave of the summer with temperatures set to pass 30C on Monday in parts of the country.

A yellow health alert is in place from 12pm on Monday through to Wednesday evening for most of England - covering all regions except for the North West and North East. The warning issued by the UK Health Security Agency means it expects heat-related issues such as an increase in deaths of over-65s, a higher demand on health services and an increased risk of overheating for vulnerable people.

Check the weather forecast where you are There is a chance Wales's August record temperature of 35.2C (95F) - recorded in 1990 - could be broken as temperatures rise by Tuesday. Uncomfortably hot "tropical nights" look to be on the cards, with temperatures staying above 20C (68F) overnight in some parts of the country.

The Met Office said on Sunday that smoke from Canadian wildfires have blown across the Atlantic and may cause some "striking sunrises and sunsets" in the coming days. There is also potential for thunderstorms.

The remnants of ex-tropical storm Dexter will be heading towards the UK from the Atlantic side on Sunday - but this is unlikely to have a big impact, according to Sky News meteorologist Christopher England. He says there may be some rain and thunderstorms later on Monday and into Tuesday, too.

What makes a heatwave? Heatwave criteria look set to be met in central, southern and eastern England on Tuesday, Mr England added. This is when temperatures pass a threshold - between 25C (77F) and 28C depending on location - for three consecutive days.

Mr England said there is a "small chance" of temperatures hitting 35C in some places. "It's worth noting that Wales's August record temperature is 35.2C, recorded at Hawarden on 2 August 1990, and there's about a 10% chance that may broken," he said.

"Temperatures look to fall a little from Wednesday, but it'll stay very warm all week." He said the current heatwave is being caused by the interaction of a low pressure system to the west and high pressure to the east, resulting in a feed of hot continental air, particularly in the south of the country. Tom Morgan, meteorologist at the Met Office, said there would "definitely" be a "North-South split in the weather" on Monday.

He said it would be "quite cloudy across Scotland, Northern Ireland and parts of northern England, the rain tending to come and go, but most persistent in western Scotland". "Otherwise, England and Wales seeing mostly sunny skies, although there will be more in the way of high level cloud out there compared to on Sunday, so the sunshine will be hazy at times," he said.

Fire services have already had to respond to blazes in the hot and dry conditions. Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service declared a major incident on Saturday as around 100 firefighters battled a fire near Wimborne.

Read more: Firefighters battle blaze in Dorset Kent Fire and Rescue Service also noted it tackled a grass fire on Saturday, although the cause is still unclear. Mainland Europe is also bracing for high temperatures, with Spain, Portugal and France potentially getting into the 40C (104F) range..