The London fire service battled through its busiest day since the Second World War on Tuesday as wildfires devastated homes around the English capital. The London Fire Brigade declared a major incident as flames swept through houses in the unprecedented heat, which saw the United Kingdom set a new temperature record of 104.5 F. “Yesterday was the busiest day for the fire service in London since the Second World War,” London Mayor Sadiq Khan told Sky News on Wednesday. “'On a normal day, the fire service receives—roughly speaking—350 calls, and on a busy day 500 calls. Yesterday, they received more than 2,600 calls—more than a dozen simultaneous fires requiring 30 engines, a couple requiring 15, and some requiring 12.” He added that 41 properties were lost and 16 firemen were injured tackling the flames.
