Spain sweltered in an unrelenting heatwave on Wednesday as temperatures started to build towards what is forecast to be a torrid weekend across southern Europe.
Spain’s weather service said thermometers could potentially hit 45 degrees in south-eastern areas of the Iberian Peninsula, which are under alert for extreme heat.
That mark of 45 degrees was reached on Monday in the village of Loja, near Granada, at the start of the heatwave that is causing restless nights across the country.
More than 100 weather stations registered temperatures of at least 35C (95F) as early as 6am on Wednesday, according to meteorologist Ruben del Campo, of Spain’s national weather agency.
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“On Wednesday we expect temperatures to fall overall with the arrival of cool winds from the north and east, with the exception of the southeast and southern Andalucía, where hot winds blowing from the interior will cause temperatures to soar,” he said.
While some relief is in store in the coming days for the Iberian Peninsula, other European countries will sweat through the weekend.
In Italy, 10 cities were put on high heat alert for older people and other vulnerable populations from Bolzano in the north extending southwards to Bologna, Florence and Rome.
Temperatures are expected to reach 40 degrees in Sardinia on Wednesday.
But storms in Italy’s populous northern Lombardy region caused flooding, felled trees and ripped roofs off buildings.
More than 200 firefighters responded to emergencies in the regional capital of Milan, Varese, near the Malpensa airport, Lecco, near Lake Como, Sondrio, located in the Alps, and Bergamo.
Temperatures are also starting to rise in Greece, where a heatwave is forecast to reach up to 44 degrees in some parts of the country in the coming days.
Officials banned access to nature reserves and forests to reduce the risk of wildfires, while authorities were opening air-conditioned areas in public buildings for people to shelter from the heat.
Greece’s agriculture ministry issued restrictions on the transportation and working hours of animals such as horses and donkeys offering rides in tourist areas during the heatwave.
Working animals will not be allowed to work between noon and 5pm on days where temperatures are between 35 and 39 degrees in the shade, while they will not be allowed to work at any time of the day when temperatures exceed that range.
Scientists report that heat-related deaths soared in 2022 in Europe, when Spain had a record-hot year.
The Mediterranean region is expected to see temperatures rise faster than many other areas of the globe due to climate change. – AP