UK hospitals may be strained amid Covid spike but won't have electricity: Report

UK Hospitals' Power Outages: The health body warned hospitals across Britain of power outages asking them to detail their preparedness for electricity failures.

Britain's health body National Health Service (NHS) has told hospitals to prepare for power outages due to fuel shortage, a report said. The health body warned hospitals across Britain of power outages asking them to detail their preparedness for electricity failures over the coming months, Sky News reported quoting a leaked email by the health body.

Britain Power Cuts: A woman with an umbrella and the Elizabeth Tower also known as Big Ben are reflected in a puddle in London. (AP)

The email comes amid fears that storms could batter the UK as had happened last winter. Additionally, the Covid pandemic in the UK is expected to increase during the winter months.

“This summer has not led to an abatement of demand for NHS services and many trusts have worked under continuous pressure,” the email said.

“Predictions for this coming winter do not indicate that pressures will reduce, concern amongst other things is a current rise in Covid cases and respiratory diseases, requiring hospital services. Adverse weather may contribute to these demands, particularly in extreme cold conditions affecting the vulnerable, which may be more impacted this year than others due to the current climate and fuel poverty, as we do recall the storms of 2021-22 which led to power loss in some regions for several days," the email further read.

Earlier Britain's electricity provider National Grid had also warned that blackouts could be imposed between 4pm and 7pm on “really, really cold” winter weekdays if Europe cuts gas exports in the wake of Russian invasion of Ukraine.