Solstice lido swimmers urged to be aware of heat

Swimmers looking to celebrate the summer solstice in a city lido are being urged to be aware of the hot weather, despite the events taking place in cooler parts of the day and night.

Peterborough Lido on Bishop's Road in the city is set to welcome swimmers for two special sessions on Saturday - one from 04:00 BST to 08:00 and another from 20:30 to 00:30.

Peterborough and the East of England are under an amber heat health alert from 19 June at 12:00 BST until 23 June at 09:00 - the second-highest warning level.

A spokeswoman for the lido management said signs urging people to stay hydrated were in place and lifeguards would "keep an eye on people for signs of heatstroke".

Parts of the East are predicted to reach 31C at the weekend.

The solstice swim - on the longest day of the year - is proving to be a popular event and other sessions at the weekend have already sold out, a spokeswoman said.

"Last year about 500 people joined us for one of our special summer solstice swims and it was great to see so many happy faces in the pool. It's hard to describe how magical the experience is, but it attracts people of all ages from far and wide and is not to be missed," she said.

Warnings about the heat have been issued, and she added: "We have signage at the entrance to the site that encourages people to stay hydrated and the lifeguards keep an eye on people for signs of heatstroke.

"We are fortunate to have several shaded areas at the lido for people to take a break from the heat. Whilst the pools are heated, they are still cooler than the air temperature, so being in the water is great for keeping cool."

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