Shropshire 999 calls frenzy in sunshine
Calls to the ambulance service in Shropshire more than tripled and firefighters were kept busy with grass and garden fires as temperatures soared to their highest level this year.
Ambulance crews dealt with more 999 calls than on New Year's Eve due to the blazing sunshine and soaring temperatures over the weekend. West Midlands Ambulance Service received 3,211 calls on Saturday compared to 2,815 on December 31.
Meanwhile in Shropshire and Hereford and Worcester the number soared from 184 to 596.
Temperatures hit 30C (86F) in some parts of the county yesterday and forecasters said today would again see figures in the high 20s.
West Mercia Police warned people not to swim in open water after the body of a teenage boy was pulled from a lake at a quarry in the Malvern Hills on Saturday.
The boy, who has not yet been named, failed to resurface after going for a swim in Gullet Quarry, near Malvern.
South Wales Police and coastguards were also last night searching for a 14-year-old girl who was last seen "in difficulty" in the sea at Whitmore Bay, Barry Island.
Ambulance service spokeswoman Claire Brown said: "The vast majority of calls were alcohol-related but there were also people with existing medical conditions which can get worse in the hot weather.
"In good weather there were more cars in the roads, more people having barbecues and more people drinking.
"Together with the normal 999 calls it made for a very busy day."
Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service crews dealt with grass and other weather-related fires across the county.
Sixty-five square feet of grass and undergrowth caught fire in Tadorna Drive, Brookside, Telford, at 11am yesterday, along with two-and-a-half acres of a field in Avondale Road, Wellington, at 2pm.
Firefighters from Bridgnorth also dealt with a tractor fire, grass fires and a fire on an embankment at the Severn Valley Railway station in Eardington.
Bridgnorth crew manager Ian George said: "It's just because of the weather.
"We're usually kept pretty busy when it's like this and yesterday was no different."
Paul Mott, a forecaster with MeteoGroup, said central and southern England all experienced hot weather, while temperatures were also high elsewhere.
"Tuesday will see temperatures in the low to mid-20s and more warm, settled weather will continue into the weekend," he added.
