Scorching heat grips the European continent

Cliff Notes – Scorching heat grips the European continent

• Severe Heatwave Across Europe: Extreme temperatures are affecting several Mediterranean regions, with Spain forecasted to reach highs of 43 degrees Celsius, prompting health warnings for vulnerable populations.
• Wildfires and Evacuations in Greece: Wildfires south of Athens have led to evacuations, exacerbated by high temperatures and strong winds, putting the area on high fire alert.
• Broad Heat Alerts in France and Italy: France faces its 50th heatwave since 1947, while extreme heat alerts have been issued in 21 Italian cities, including Rome, as regional authorities issue health warnings.

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Extreme heat is being felt across Europe with more in store over the coming days.  Though the Wimbledon tennis tournament says, it is bracing for its hottest-ever start with temperatures expected to be around 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit), southern countries like Spain, Italy, and Greece look set to see temperatures far higher still.

In all, high temperatures are expected to affect the entire Mediterranean, from the Iberian Peninsula to the Balkans.

In Andalusia, in southern Spain, temperatures are set to climb to 43 degrees in a heatwave forecast to last until late next week. Spain’s AEMET state weather service has also forecast high temperatures in the country’s northeastern Zaragoza area.

Spain says medical emergency staff expect to see a surge in heatstroke cases among children, the elderly and those with chronic illness.

Temperatures over 40 are also expected in neighboring Portugal, where fire warnings have been given for northern inland areas as well as along the Algarve coast. Authorities say emergency workers expect to treat an increased number of heatstroke victims as temperatures soarImage: Thomas Coex/AFP

Wildfires raging in Greece

In Greece, which is also experiencing its first heatwave of the season with temperatures surpassing 40 degrees, a wildfire has triggered evacuations south of the capital, Athens, where coast guard ships and fire-dousing helicopters are actively fighting the blaze. Patrol boats have been deployed to the area for a potential sea evacuation.

Here, too, high temperatures and strong winds have worsened the situation.  

Athens and its surrounding areas remain on high fire alert due to the prevailing conditions.

France fries as Bezos sweats it out in Italy

The Meteo France weather agency declared this week that the country is experiencing its 50th national heatwave since 1947, with several regions under high-temperature alert.

The weather agency said higher surface temperatures in the Mediterranean had become an “aggravating factor,” meaning that daytime temperatures could reach upwards of 39 degrees and little respite should be expected at night.

In Italy, 21 cities, including the capital, Rome, have been put under extreme temperature alert. Another city on the list is Venice, where billionaire American businessman Jeff Bezos is making a TV presenter his second wife among crowds of celebrity guests as well as protesters in the tourist destination.

Across the Adriatic, Croatian, Bosnian and Serbian authorities also issued health warnings as temperatures rose and as wildfires raged in Albania.

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Stay inside when heatwaves hit

All across the EU, residents are being advised to remain indoors during the hottest part of the day if possible — generally from about 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. — though meteorologists say little cooling should be expected at night over the next week.

Though early summer heatwaves were known in the past, meteorologists say they are becoming far more frequent as a result of what they say is human-induced climate change.

Statistics from scientists at AEMET in Spain, for instance, documented only two June heatwaves between 1975 and 2000. Nine were recorded between 2000 and 2024.