Train signal melts, fire alarm goes off in theatre as heatwave roasts UK
Train services faced major disruption across Britain on Wednesday as wildfire triggered by extreme temperature melted signalling equipment and damaged the tracks. Photos posted online by Network Rail and other operators show a level crossing damaged between King's Cross and Peterborough.
Videos from across the country surfaced all over social media showing what damage the record temperature has caused. One of these videos shows houses in a village outside East of London damaged by a massive fire, while another one shows forest burning on the side of a highway.
A woman using a portable fan while commuting in London. (Reuters)
The record breaking temperature also caused the fire alarm in one of the theatres going off because of the heat. A video from the Globe Theatre shows staff members scrambling for cover as the sprinkler system discharges water in the building.
"When global warming sets off your thatched roof's anti-Puritan/cannonfire sprinklers," actor George Fouracres said on Twitter while posting the video from the theatre.
When global warming sets off your thatched roof’s anti-Puritan/cannonfire sprinklers pic.twitter.com/cEKerw0w6N
— George Fouracres (@GeorgeFouracres) July 19, 2022
The record-breaking heat has also led to a surge in fire case, with London's firefighting authority declaring a major incident in the British capital on Tuesday.
The London Fire Brigade said it had deployed dozens of fire engines to several fires in and around the city, including thirty to a grass fire in east London. Television footage showed one blaze engulfing several homes.
Meanwhile, train cancellations across the country created a harrowing situation for commuters who were seen sleeping on suitcases and benches at London's Kings Cross on Wednesday morning.
The authorities running train operations have been issuing warning commuters to "not come to the station". People have also been advised to avoid unnecessary travel.
Courtesy: www.ndtv.com
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Dense fog disrupts Delhi airport operations, over 130 flights impacted
New Delhi: Flight operations at Indira Gandhi International Airport were severely disrupted on Monday due to very dense fog that drastically reduced visibility across the national capital, officials said.
According to a report published by The New Indian Express, more than 130 flights were impacted, including 128 cancellations 64 arrivals and 64 departures while eight flights were diverted to other airports as airlines struggled to operate under adverse weather conditions.
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Sharing a passenger advisory on X (formerly Twitter), the Delhi Airport informed that "flight operations are currently being conducted under CAT III conditions due to dense fog, which may result in delays or cancellations."
The disruption comes amid worsening weather and environmental conditions in the city. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) had issued an orange alert for very dense fog across Delhi-NCR, warning of travel delays and poor visibility during early morning hours.
As per the report, the city’s Air Quality Index (AQI) hovered around 460 in the early hours, placing it in the “hazardous” category. As many as 19 monitoring stations reported hazardous air quality, with Anand Vihar recording the worst levels. Other areas reported air quality ranging from “very poor” to “severe.”
Meanwhile, the Delhi government is considering a partnership with IIT Kanpur to deploy Artificial Intelligence for pinpointing pollution sources and evaluating their impact.
Officials reportedly said the environment department is working on a roadmap for the partnership, including institutional mechanisms and phased implementation. Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said the focus would be on data-driven decision-making. “We are moving towards a model where decisions are driven by real-time data, source identification, and measurable outcomes, not reactive measures.” he said.
He proposed initiative aims to enable targeted interventions across sectors by strengthening Delhi’s ability to track pollution sources at a granular level.
