An electric double decker bus burst into flames at a bus depot on the UK’s record hottest day in June.
The Number 23 service was filmed alight in Westbourne Park at around 6pm yesterday evening.
Four fire engines and 25 firefighters were on scene tackling the blaze at the bus garage on Great Western Road, which also destroyed two electric vehicle charging points, London Fire Brigade confirmed.
Pictures and clips from the scene showed huge flames billowing from the red vehicle, which was near a open-top Toot tourist bus.
Fire crews from Paddington and North Kensington attended at 6.23pm and had the fire under control by 7.11pm.
The number 23 usually operates from Westbourne Park to Aldwych and Drury Lane, via Marble Arch and Piccadilly Circus.
The cause of the incident, on a day when temperatures soared to more than 35C across London, is currently being investigated.
It comes as the Met Office extended its red warning for extreme heat for an unprecedented third consecutive day across the capital.
Its chief meteorologist Andy Page said: ‘This exceptional spell of hot and humid weather will maintain its grip on the UK for a little longer.
‘Although the current red warning for areas in more central and western parts of England and Wales will expire later today, the heatwave will still be bringing high temperatures to these areas, albeit moving away from the peak heat of Wednesday and Thursday.
‘We are expecting that some daytime maximum temperatures could exceed 36°C, perhaps rising to 37°C in some locations.’
He added: ‘Significant disruption to daily life is likely and the public should take every effort to adapt their daily routines to cope with these levels of heat, which up to now have been extremely rare for the UK.’
Friday is expected to be another extremely hot day, with high humidity adding to the searing daytime heat. Londoners are braced for at least two more ‘tropical nights’, where the mercury stays above 20C.