HOT temperatures caused chaos across south Essex with authorities and businesses promising to learn lessons from the heatwave.

Fridges and freezers broke down at supermarkets, air conditioning failed at a cinema in Basildon and traffic lights failed at major junctions including Kent Elms junction in Southend and Southernhay in Basildon.

And c2c are dealing with a complaint after a woman fainted on a train.

Benfleet commuter Grace Kimberley, 23, said: “I was on the 17.49 service from Fenchurch Street to Benfleet and there was no air-conditioning. I lost consciousness and had to be pulled off the train at Barking.

“When I was pulled off the train, people abandoned the train as the heat was unbearable.”

A c2c spokesman said: “Sorry to everyone who had an uncomfortable journey, especially the customer who fainted.

“We are continuously monitoring and managing the air conditioning performance, re-setting systems where possible and replacing faulty units at our depots.

“Reporting this is crucial, and allows teams to assess the carriages and carry out repairs.”

Waitrose in Billericay closed freezers and fridges. A spokesman said: “Our freezers were temporarily affected by the hot weather.

“The quick actions of staff allowed us to get stock into storage and the issue has now been rectified to enable us refill the cabinets.

“We are grateful to customers for patience and understanding.”

Basildon Cineworld goers were left sweating during showings as the air conditioning broke.

A number of residents tweeted about the issue.

One said: “We went to see The Lion King and we could hardly stand it.”

A Cineworld spokesman said: “In anticipation of the heatwave, Cineworld worked alongside engineers to ensure individual air-conditioned units were added into each screen.

“Engineers have been on site frequently checking the air conditioned units and arrived quickly on Thursday evening to repair one faulty unit.

“They had it back up and running by the next film showing.”

Andrew Gordon, Labour councillor for Lee Chapel North, spotted traffic lights failed in Southernhay, Basildon.

Essex County Council said engineers visited and fixed the issue quickly.

Southend Council received some criticism for its slow clean-up of beaches. A spokesman said: “Veolia’s crews have been working every day until at least 9pm hand-picking litter and emptying bins. Due to the huge number of visitors taking advantage of the hot weather, bins have been filling quickly. In addition, crews have been up on the crack of dawn with the beach-combing machine to prepare the beaches for the coming day.”