A hot weekend is ahead for people in southern Europe. In many places, temperatures reach over 40 degrees – an exhausting situation for people, animals and nature. People, especially risk groups, should stay at home and refrain from outdoor activities. With temperatures so high, public life effectively stops from midday until late at night.
All activities become torture because of the high temperatures. According to the European Space Agency (ESA), the highest temperatures ever recorded in Europe can even be reached at the weekend. ESA assumes temperatures up to 48 degrees in Sicily. So far, the European maximum is 48.8 degrees, reached in August 2021 in Florida, Sicily.
Portal/Remo Casilli A man cools off in a fountain in Rome
Italy: From one heat wave to another
Italy has been suffering from the heat for days. Because of “Cerbero” – the multi-headed hellhound of Greek mythology – the 40 degree mark was crossed in Sardinia and the Apulia region on Wednesday. The Ministry of Health has declared red the highest heat alert level for several cities.
Portal/Remo Casilli Tourists in Rome protect themselves from the sun with umbrellas
There is no relief in sight: “Charonte” will follow “Cerbero” with even higher temperatures. The high pressure area is expected to reach its maximum heat early next week – with temperatures in the high 40s in Rome, Florence and Bologna, for example. In parts of Sardinia there are up to 47 degrees, in Sicily, according to the ESA, 48 degrees.
The Ministry of Health declared a heat emergency for major cities on Wednesday. According to the air force meteorological service, 37 degrees were measured in the capital Rome and in the cities of Florence and Bologna. According to forecasts, this heat wave should not be the last one this summer. More highs can then fall.
APA/AFP/Cristina Quicler A pedestrian protects her head from the sun with a newspaper
Greece: temperatures above 40 degrees
In Greece, people also prepare for extremes: in Athens, the thermometer is expected to rise to over 41 degrees. The Ministry of Culture has instructed managers of archaeological sites such as the Acropolis to temporarily close sites for several hours if it gets too hot. Many communities keep air-conditioned halls open for shelter.
Special attention should be paid to the elderly, the sick and young children, he said. Also, pets and stray animals should not be forgotten – they should be given enough water everywhere. The Red Cross distributes bottled water to thousands of visitors at the foot of the Acropolis. It is considered to close the Acropolis in the hottest hours of the day due to the heat of the next few days.
APA/AFP/Sakis Mitrolidis The port of Thessaloniki is practically empty at midday because of the heat
The Greek Ministry of Citizen Protection has already warned of an increased risk of fire in the coming week. As the heat wave is accompanied by severe drought and strong winds blow in many parts of the country from Monday, the risk of major fires will also increase, warned Citizen Protection Minister Vassilis Kikilias.
Bulgaria: orange alert
In Bulgaria, it is the first heat wave of the year: on Thursday, the authorities announced the second highest alert level, orange – with the hottest day since the beginning of the year. There are maximum temperatures of up to 41 degrees in Plovdiv and in Russe on the Danube. According to meteorologists, the heat wave should keep the country under control for about ten days. It remains most pleasant at around 32 degrees on the Black Sea coast.
Climate researcher: “Heat is the silent killer”
Climate researchers expect new heat records in southern Europe this summer. Huge temperatures and almost no overnight cooling make everyday life difficult for many, but the heat also poses a considerable danger to the population. “Heat is a silent killer,” warned Hannah Cloke, a climate scientist and professor at the University of Reading, to the Portal news agency in an interview.
Türkiye: Intense heat warning
Also in Turkey, the meteorological service warns of intense heat over the weekend. In the west of the country, temperatures in the coming days will be up to ten degrees above normal for the season, in the remaining parts of the country up to six degrees above normal.
In the holiday region of Antalya, temperatures of up to 42 degrees are expected over the weekend. Temperatures of up to 40 degrees can also be reached in the southeastern parts of Turkey that were destroyed by the February earthquake. This is particularly bitter for the people there: many of them still live in emergency shelters.
Spain groans in the heat
In Spain, the second official heat wave of this summer eased slightly on Thursday. The AEMET meteorological service, which warned for several regions on Wednesday, just proclaimed the highest red alert for the south of Gran Canaria.
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What to do against the heat?
On the mainland, however, it should remain very hot, especially in parts of Andalusia with temperatures of up to 40 degrees. The heat wave had already hit people in many regions of Spain. The highest temperatures were recorded at just under 45 degrees in Andalusia and Murcia. Also in Mallorca, the temperature temporarily rose above 40 degrees.
According to experts, parts of Spain are drier than they have been in a thousand years. It was also the hottest and driest spring on record.
The consequences of lack of water
Families need to conserve water despite the extreme heat. If the day’s water supply runs out, the evening’s dishes often go unwashed, according to Bloomberg on the cumulative problems caused by the lack of water. Air conditioning systems and devices are only a limited solution as they often consume large amounts of electricity and the waste heat from the devices is often discharged to the outside. The Catalan capital, Barcelona, has had to be supplied with water brought in by large tanker trucks in recent years.
APA/AFP/Jorge Guerrero The almost completely dry lake Fuente de Piedra near the Spanish Mediterranean city of Malaga
“34 consecutive months of drought”
Drought is having an increasing impact on agriculture and livestock. Some companies are on the verge of ruin. “At the end of May and in June we had light rains that benefited agriculture and reduced the risk of forest fires,” Sarai Sarroca, director of the Catalan meteorological agency, told Bloomberg. But not enough rain “we need to alleviate 34 consecutive months of drought,” Sarraco told Bloomberg.
APA/AFP/Spyros Bakalis Water is one of the ways to cool down
Water reservoirs with questionable water levels
The reservoirs, the largest water reservoirs in the region, are also in a desolate state in terms of water. They currently have a water level of only around 30%, as Bloomberg writes. This is well below the Spanish average of 47.5%. In the last decade, it was still an average of 68 percent. A change in the extremely tense situation is not in sight.
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Traffic jams caused by “disaster tourism”
Numerous small businesses in the tourism sector on the reservoirs, such as kayak rentals and food stalls, as well as hotels, are on the verge of collapse, as Bloomberg writes. Water sports are impossible in some parts, there is only hard dry mud, according to Bloomberg. According to Bloomberg, however, the reservoirs became a meeting place for “disaster tourists” – including traffic jams on arrival – over the weekend.
This caused resentment among officials responsible for monitoring water quality. It would hinder them in their work, according to Bloomberg. Visitors have also sometimes become trapped in the muddy banks, prompting the regional government to consider restricting access to the drying up reservoirs.
Villages that used to get water from reservoirs are having to look to other sources, such as rivers, as water quality is affected by falling water levels, Bloomberg said.
Extreme weather events are becoming more frequent
While individual extreme events cannot be directly attributed to a specific cause, according to the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, it is clear that extreme weather events such as floods, storms and heat are becoming more frequent and intense as a result. of the climate. crisis. That means: precipitation and storms are getting heavier, heat waves are getting hotter, and droughts are getting drier.