Police officers have warned people not to leave dogs in cars during the heatwave. 

The Essex Police Dog Section carried out an experiment to see how quickly a vehicle would heat up in the hot weather. 

The team left a cooled car, with no dog in it, for 30 minutes and found the temperature had risen by 13 degrees to a scorching 31.4C. 

In a Tweet they said: "For an experiment, with no dog in the car, we cooled the interior down to 18.5 c then left it in the sun.

"Just over 30minutes later the inside temperature had climbed nearly 13degrees. It will be even hotter this weekend.

"Please share: Don’t leave dogs in hot cars!"

It came the same weekend as fire crews saved two dog from a scorching car after the owner accidentally locked them inside.

The firefighters were called to the incident in Ingrave Road, Brentwood on Sunday at 11:40am.

Read more >> Fire crews save two dog from scorching car after owner accidentally locked them inside

A spokesman for Essex Fire Service said: "Two dogs were rescued from a hot car in Brentwood this morning after they were inadvertently locked inside.

"The dogs, both of which were Shih Tzus including one which was pregnant, became trapped after the owner accidentally left keys inside the vehicle.

"Firefighters managed to release the animals by 12.05pm. Fortunately, neither dog was harmed and both were left in the care of their owner."