A scorching heatwave has struck southern Europe, leading authorities to issue health and wildfire alerts as temperatures are projected to rise once more.
Countries such as France, Italy, Portugal, and Spain have been enduring extreme heat for several days, with some regions experiencing temperatures climbing to 44°C.
In southern Spain, temperatures peaked at 46°C on Saturday, marking a new record for June, according to the national weather agency’s report this morning.
This new high was recorded in Huelva, near the Portuguese border, surpassing the previous record of 45.2°C set in 1965 in Seville, the agency noted.
Map of Europe showing temperature changes from 30 June to 2 July according to Copernicus forecasts
Paris along with 15 other departments will elevate to the red alert level, the last warning issued in August 2023, due to the extreme temperatures, said Meteo France.
Additionally, 68 other departments will remain on the orange alert, which is the second highest level.
This situation is “unprecedented,” stated Agner Pannier-Runacher, France’s ecology transition minister.
According to Meteo France, only a small area in the northwest of the country is not experiencing the heatwave, which is expected to peak tomorrow and Wednesday.
As the summer’s first significant heatwave unfolds, authorities along the Mediterranean’s northern coast have been advising people to seek shelter.
Children cool down under water being sprayed at a park in Paris
Ambulances have been stationed near tourist hotspots as experts have warned that such heatwaves, exacerbated by climate change, are likely to become more frequent.
Firefighters remain on alert after wildfires ignited yesterday in France and Turkey, fueled by the intense heat and strong winds.
Last week, Greek firefighters fought a forest fire on the coast south of Athens, which necessitated some evacuations.
Spain’s weather service AEMET reported that temperatures in Extremadura and Andalusia reached up to 44°C yesterday.
In Madrid, where temperatures neared 40°C, 32-year-old photographer Diego Radames shared with AFPTV, “I feel that the heat we’re experiencing is not normal for this time of year.”
“As the years go by, I have the feeling that Madrid is getting hotter and hotter, especially in the city center,” he added.
In Italy, 21 cities nationwide are under high alert for extreme heat, including Milan, Naples, Venice, Florence, Rome, and Catania.
Watch: Tourists grapple with soaring temperatures in Rome and Lisbon
Emergency departments across Italy have reported a 10% rise in heatstroke cases, according to Mario Guarino, vice president of the Italian Society of Emergency Medicine.
“Primarily elderly individuals, cancer patients, or homeless people are presenting with dehydration, heatstroke, and fatigue,” he noted.
Several regions in southern Portugal, including Lisbon, are under a red warning until tonight, reported the Portuguese Institute for Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA).
Two-thirds of Portugal is on high alert for extreme heat and forest fires, as is the Italian island of Sicily, where firefighters dealt with 15 blazes on Saturday.
Scientists indicate that climate change is intensifying hotter and more severe heatwaves, particularly in urban areas where the so-called “urban heat island” effect is magnifying temperatures due to dense building arrangements.
“The heatwaves in the Mediterranean region have become more frequent and intense over recent years,” said Emanuela Piervitali, a researcher at the Italian Institute for Environmental Protection and Research (ISPRA).
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“We anticipate a further rise in temperature and extreme heat in the future, necessitating adaptation to even higher temperatures than those currently seen,” she concluded.
The heat is also inviting invasive species, which thrive in increasingly tropical conditions.
ISPRA has initiated a campaign this week advising fishermen and tourists to report sightings of four “potentially dangerous” venomous species.
The lionfish, silver-cheeked toadfish, dusky spinefoot, and marbled spinefoot are starting to show up in waters off southern Italy as the Mediterranean warms, according to their reports.
In France, experts cautioned that the heat is severely impacting biodiversity.
Meteorologist with the Irish Weather Channel, Cathal Nolan, attributed the soaring temperatures across Europe to a “heat dome” settling over the continent.
People cool down in a fountain at the Andre-Citroen park in Paris
“We refer to it as a heat dome because large areas of high pressure, or anticyclones, essentially create a lid on a pot, allowing the air to become trapped underneath. This contributes to rising temperatures over a number of days,” he explained.
While speaking on RTÉ’s Today with Claire Byrne, Mr. Nolan stated, “Within these particular systems under high pressure, air descends, gets compressed, and retains the comparatively warm air at the surface. This is why we are seeing these extraordinarily high temperatures right now.”
He mentioned that the heat is not limited to the Iberian Peninsula, “it’s affecting many parts of France, with temperatures pushing towards 40°C today, extending into much of Central Europe and eventually across the Balkans and later to Greece.”
“Temperatures across these regions are expected to reach the high 30s, and in some cases low 40s, as we progress through today and into the next few days,” he added.
