Hottest Twelfth in 12 years as marchers and supporters urged to take precautions against sun

With the mercury predicted to peak at 29°C early afternoon on Saturday, both marchers and supporters alike have been urged to take precautions against blazing sun and scorching heat.

Temperatures on the big day haven’t been that high since 2013, the Met Office has confirmed, when it hit 29.1°C – and there’s an outside chance of equalling the all-time heat record for July in Northern Ireland.

A Met Office spokeswoman told the News Letter the Twelfth will be “another hot and sunny day”, though temperatures will be even further up the scale than Friday.

Across Northern Ireland, highs will widely be around 26°C to 28°C, though central and western parts will soar to 29°C – and could potentially even reach 30°C.

Conditions will be cooler along the Irish Sea coasts, however.

“We could be close to reaching the all-time high of 31°C, recorded in Castlederg on July 21, 2021, but probably will fall just short of this,” said a Met Office spokeswoman.

Another bright and sunny day follows on Sunday, the spokeswoman added, and still very warm, though a degree or two below Saturday’s scorcher.

Things turn more unsettled on Monday and Tuesday, with showers or longer spells of rain while temperatures drop closer to average.

But with temperatures hitting their highest between noon and 3pm on Saturday, the most extreme heat of the potentially record-equalling day happens at the same time as parades, exhibitions, re-enactments and platform speeches across the country.

It’s going to be so hot, in fact, that a Met Office spokeswoman previously told the News Letter their standard advice would be to clear off out of the sun altogether when the day’s at its peak hours immediately after noon.

But that’s not really doable this weekend as families line streets all over the province to watch the big day’s parades, while demonstration fields aren’t usually known for their heavy tree cover.

“Our advice would be to make sure you take plenty of water,” said the spokeswoman. “A hat would be a good idea, and sunscreen; if you can stay in the shade, do so.”

Reinforcing the need for sunscreen, and a decently strong one at that, the spokeswoman stated that ultraviolet light levels are expected to be high due to the bright sunshine and heat.

Although there may be a slight breeze in coastal areas, she added, in general the province will feel humid – and rural parts of Northern Ireland won’t get much in the way of wind at all.

She went on to advise anyone indoors on Saturday to keep their curtains drawn as much as possible so sunlight can’t dramatically heat up the house. Allowing the light in, she said, will mean heat gets trapped indoors and could lead to an oppressive night.

Overnight Saturday will be a warm one, temperatures staying around 20°C – good news for late-night revellers, but exhausted marchers trying to get a spot of shut-eye could struggle in the heat.