Dozens rescued as rain leads to flooding and travel is disrupted in parts of the UK

LONDON (AP) — Dozens of people were rescued Monday from flooded homes and stranded cars as a soggy and cold spell continued to disrupt life across parts of the U.K. and more wintry weather was expected.

Hundreds of schools were closed for the first day of classes of 2025, trains were halted and commuters experienced headaches as sections of highways and major roads were closed from high water and snow that made driving hazardous.

Much of the U.K. has been hit by strong winds and periods of precipitation that struck before New Year's Day and snuffed out several fireworks displays and other celebrations. Several communities have faced significant flooding since the start of the year.

Warnings that flooding was expected were issued in nearly 200 places in England by late Monday afternoon. Several train lines were shut down or experiencing delays due to floodwaters or trees that had fallen on tracks.

The body of a man found Monday in a flooded area near the River Aire in northern England was believed to have gone in the water over the weekend, North Yorkshire police said. They were seeking his identification.

Leicestershire and neighboring Lincolnshire in the English Midlands declared major incidents as they responded to hundreds of calls for help as waterways spilled over their banks and turned roads into rivers, burying cars up to their roofs.

Nearly 60 people were rescued from swamped homes and vehicles, the Leicestershire fire service said on the X social media platform. Emergency workers were trying to pluck children from a school in Edenham, where they were safe but stranded, the Lincolnshire Resilience Forum posted on X.

One woman was rescued from a car by a pub owner who waded up to his chest in frigid floodwaters to pull her from the vehicle and carry her to safety.

Cimi Kazazi, the owner of the Italian Greyhound in Great Glen, had arrived at his business in the morning to find it partially under water, Luigi Salcini, the pub manager told The Associated Press.

The woman had tried to drive to her house when her car, covered with a dusting of snow from the night before, got stuck. Eventually the water rose up to the windows.

“She started to drive but realized the car was deeper and she started going down with the water,” Salcini said. “She started to scream, ‘Help’ and we came out and Cimi went to rescue her.”

In rural areas, rows of hedges poked from the brown waters marking field boundaries as large swaths of farmland were submerged.

Southeast of London, the Little Venice trailer park in Yalding, Kent was surrounded by floodwaters.

Snow created a beautiful backdrop in the hills of northern England and parts of Scotland, but forced hundreds of schools to shut their doors on what had been scheduled to be the first day of the new year.

With temperatures dipping below freezing in many places, authorities were also warning people to be careful of icy conditions in Tuesday.

Snow and ice warnings were in place for most of the U.K. into Tuesday and through Wednesday in southern England.

A member of a Mountain Rescue team stand on a road after helping to clear cars from a snow drift near Ribblehead, England, Monday, Jan. 6, 2025. (Danny Lawson/PA via AP)

A person clears snow from a car in Allendale, England, Monday, Jan. 6, 2025. (Owen Humphreys/PA via AP)

Snow surrounds Duckett's Grove, a ruined 19th-century great house and former estate in County Carlow in Ireland, Monday, Jan. 6, 2025. (Niall Carson/PA via AP)

A view of a blanket of snow on cars and houses, in Allenheads, in the Pennines, Northumberland, England, Monday, Jan. 6, 2025. (Owen Humphreys/PA via AP)

A view of flood waters around the Little Venice caravan park in Yalding, Kent, England, Monday, Jan. 6, 2025. (Gareth Fuller/PA via AP)

Members of a Mountain Rescue team help to clear cars from a snow drift near Ribblehead, in North Yorkshire, England, as large parts of the UK are facing heavy snow and freezing rain, which is likely to cause disruption, after two amber weather warnings came into force, on Monday Jan. 6, 2025. (Danny Lawson/PA via AP)

A view of flood waters around the Little Venice caravan park in Yalding, Kent, England, Monday, Jan. 6, 2025. (Gareth Fuller/PA via AP)

A vehicle is submerged under water near the River Devon, in Bottesford, Leicestershire, England, Monday, Jan. 6, 2025. (Mike Egerton/PA via AP)

A person clears snow from a road near Allenheads, England, Monday, Jan. 6, 2025. (Owen Humphreys/PA via AP)

A car passes between flooded fields near the River Tone in Somerset, England, Monday, Jan. 6, 2025. (Ben Birchall/PA via AP)

A view of flood waters around the Little Venice caravan park in Yalding, Kent, England, Monday, Jan. 6, 2025. (Gareth Fuller/PA via AP)

PARIS (AP) — Tennis players at the French Open say they haven’t experienced conditions this hot at Roland Garros since the Paris Olympics.

And the 2024 Olympics were held in July and August.

Temperatures for the opening two days of the clay-court Grand Slam have soared to 33 degrees C (91 F) — far beyond normal for late May in the French capital. And it’s forecast to stay that way for the entire first week.

Besides making it uncomfortable for fans and players alike, the sultry conditions have also created faster conditions on court — changing the pace of the game.

“It is much different. Maybe it was that hot in the Olympics but the balls were different, so I wouldn’t treat it as the same tournament,” four-time French Open champion Iga Swiatek said after routing Emerson Jones 6-1, 6-2 in the first round on Monday.

Players have been putting bags of ice around their necks on changeovers to stay cool, while fans are refreshing themselves under sprinklers.

When workers water the clay courts between sets, they have taken to directing their hoses at spectators begging to be doused, too.

“I don’t remember the last time it was so hot at Roland Garros,” Russian-born Australian player Daria Kasatkina said after beating Zeynep Sonmez 6-4, 6-4. “Maybe one day. But we’re going to have it for the whole week.”

Kasatkina said the energy-sapping temperatures made for more up-and-down matches.

“You can suddenly just get out of the bench and feel that your focus dropped,” she said. “So this is a battle which you have to also win. … Whoever adapts better to today’s conditions gets it.”

Canadian player Gabriel Diallo said the heat was the main reason why he retired midway through his match against James Duckworth on Sunday.

Both Andrey Rublev and opponent Ignacio Buse called for the trainer on separate occasions during the second set of their match on Monday.

Buse took a medical timeout and had salts and minerals added to his water bottle as a stethoscope was placed on his chest. Rublev received treatment a few games later.

The French Open is usually cool compared to the heat at the Australian Open and U.S. Open.

But like in Australia and New York, the French Open has adopted an extreme weather policy.

If the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT) — which takes into account temperature, humidity, sun, wind and other factors — reaches 30.1 degrees C (86 F) or higher, 10-minute cooling breaks can be installed between the second and third sets for women’s matches and between the third and fourth sets for men’s matches.

If the WBGT hits 32.2 C (90 F), play is suspended. It would require an air temperature of about 38 C (100 F) for play to be suspended.

Some players were embracing the hotter air.

“I’ve always preferred hot and lively conditions to chilly on a clay court, because I feel like I can bring a little bit more of my all-court tennis on this type of surface,” Australian player Alex de Minaur said after beating Toby Samuel 6-4, 6-4, 6-2.

“It’s easier to be a little bit more aggressive. The ball is jumping. I don’t necessarily have to use as much spin or heaviness, and I can let the conditions do the job for me. And it’s quite physical. I don’t mind the heat,” De Minaur added.

Same goes for American player Alex Michelsen, who eliminated Alexander Shevchenko in straight sets.

“It’s definitely good for us Americans,” Michelsen said. “Generally we’re big serve, big forehand, big ground game and like to play offense. When it’s super hot, the ball is moving through the air very fast. … I was so happy when I saw the forecast.”

AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

A stadium worker sprays the court with water before the first round men's singles tennis match at the French Open tennis tournament in Paris, Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Visitors cool themselves with water from sprinklers during a hot day at the French Open tennis tournament in Paris, Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

A woman cools herself with a portable fan during the first round men's singles tennis match between Alex De Minaur of Australia and Toby Samuel of Britain at the French Open tennis tournament in Paris, Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

Spectators cool themselves with hand fans during the first round women's singles tennis match between Elina Svitolina of Ukraine and Anna Bondar of Hungary at the French Open tennis tournament in Paris, Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

Poland's Iga Swiatek gestures for a ballboy as he shields her from the sun during a break at the first round women's singles tennis match against Emerson Jones of Australia at the French Open tennis tournament in Paris, Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Visitors cool themselves with water from sprinklers during a hot day at the French Open tennis tournament in Paris, Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

Alex De Minaur of Australia attends a break during the first round men's singles tennis match against Toby Samuel of Britain at the French Open tennis tournament in Paris, Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)