UK: Warmth to last for 2018 London Marathon, St. George's Day festivities
Whilst Thursday was the warmest day so far this year across the United Kingdom, the mild air will hang on for this weekend's London Marathon and St. George's Day festivities.
Saturday brought another day of temperatures soaring well above normal across the U.K.
However, a cold front will sweep the mild air out of the northern and western U.K. to close out the weekend.
The warmth will linger across South-East England for the second half of the weekend. As a result, this year’s London Marathon will rival the warmest on record.
The all-time record was reached Sunday afternoon for the marathon. 23.2 C (73.8 F) was observed Sunday afternoon, which beat the previous record of 23 C (73 F).
While spectators may enjoy the warmth, racers would rather have more seasonable temperatures for the event. The normal high in London on April 22 is 14 C (57 F).
Extra water, ice, showers and medical stations are being provided to the runners, according to the Associated Press.
Runners are also discouraged from dressing up in “fancy costumes.”
Light-colored clothing is ideal to combat warmth as dark colors absorb more sunlight. With sunny spells in the forecast, spectators should join runners in applying sunscreen.
The same applies to those heading to Sunday’s St. George’s Festival at Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens.
As the cold front approaches South East England, odd thundery showers are expected to develop on Sunday afternoon. The showers are expected to impact only a fraction of the region, but may cause issues for runners and anyone else outdoors if one targets the London area.
"Any shower or thunderstorm could create a slick running surface," AccuWeather Meteorologist Tyler Roys said.
As soon as thunder is heard, the threat of being struck by lightning is present and shelter should be sought immediately.
The passage of the front will bring an end to the warm spell across England by Monday. Highs to start the new week will be trimmed to 16-17 C (lower 60s F) in London.
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