Heat waves are unprecedented, except when they are precedented
United Kingdom
At 14:32 BST on Wednesday, 19 July 2006, 35.7 °C (96.3 °F) was recorded at Wisley, Surrey. This confirmed that the period of prolonged warm weather was a true heat wave. The United Kingdom's all-time temperature high of 38.5 °C (101.3 °F) attained at Faversham, Kent, on 10 August 2003 was not reached.
Whilst a disputed 42.0 °C (107.6 °F) was recorded at Wisley Airfield on 18 July, this figure has never been accepted and the figure of 35.7 °C (96.3 °F) from 19 July is the highest acceptable value. This figure is generally deemed to be erroneous and it has been suggested that the recorded temperature was in fact 32.0 °C (89.6 °F). Another theory is that the 42.0 °C (107.6 °F) record on 18 July 2006 was recorded in the sunshine, not in standard 'shaded' areas.
Similar temperatures were recorded in the sunshine during a brief heatwave at Wimbledon on 1 July 2015. The heatwave even warmed the normally cool and wet Scottish summer, with Glasgow having a July high of 22.7 °C (72.9 °F) and low of 13.7 °C (56.7 °F), which made it the warmest month on record.[1] Because of the northerly location and marine nature, it was not a heat wave in a general sense, but rather unusually warm weather.
Drought was an issue in many parts of the United Kingdom after a very dry winter. There was warning of drought occurring from the early months of 2006. Following the dry winter, with extreme temperatures occurring in the country and little rain, increasing strain was put on water supplies, and hose-pipe bans were issued in many counties. The Environment Agency claimed that the UK may have had the most severe drought in 100 years.
Some power cuts occurred, after lightning strikes and some due to large amounts of electricity used by air conditioners. In Central London on 27 July 2006 a series of power cuts hit Piccadilly Circus, Regent Street, Turner Broadcasting UK and Oxford Circus causing the closure of shops and businesses, when pre-existing faults were worsened by heavy demand.
The Met Office confirmed that July 2006 was the warmest July, as well as the warmest single month, overall, across the UK, and a number of regional records were also broken.[2]
The tarmac on some roads melted in England, requiring application of crushed rock dust.[3][4]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_European_heat_wave