Cyprus has not escaped the devastating temperatures gripping the eastern Mediterranean.
The unremitting heatwave has attracted unofficial names which reflect its savagery. Western Europe has given it the Greek name Cerberus after the mythical multi-headed dog who guarded the gates of Hades. In Greece and Cyprus, it is called Cleon after an unscrupulous, warmongering Athenian general from the first century BC.
In Cyprus, the capital, Nicosia, is hardest hit. Temperatures have risen to 43 degrees. A brief overnight retreat to 26-28 degrees cannot compensate for the punitive highs which meteorologists predict will continue.
Several elderly people are in hospital with heatstroke and a 90-year-old man has died.
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On the coast, Limassol, Larnaca and Paphos are 5-7 degrees cooler, but humidity is considerably higher than in Nicosia and the weather is balmy and dry in the Troodos mountains.
Before independence in 1960, the island’s British colonial rulers would summer there under umbrella pines in stone-built cabins and play tennis on courts in Troodos square. Cypriot civil servants followed suit for some years, but young bureaucrats prefer to stay in air-conditioned cities.
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There are seven summer plagues in Cyprus. They were limited to August, but are now taking a toll in July.
The first is the overbearing sun which shines for 15 hours, burning flora, dehydrating fauna, toasting humans, and stoking the island furnace.
While it is possible to shelter from the sun, the second plague, heat, is omnipresent. It rises early in the day and cities, towns and villages become vast ovens with no off switches.
The interior of the island is hottest. In Nicosia dogs and their masters, walkers and joggers take to the streets by 6am when the temperature is bearable. While offices, shops and some houses are fully air-conditioned, many rely on split units to cool main rooms. Heat possesses the rest. Walls, floors and furniture are warm to the touch and do not cool down until heatwaves dissipate. Going from a cool room to a sweltering corridor or room presents a dizzying challenge. Tap water is near boiling, bathing water from roof tanks is warm. Paint glues cupboard doors shut and peels off wooden shutters. Gardens demand water every other day. The popular municipal pool is closed for renovation but this cannot proceed because construction halts when the temperature is over 40 degrees.
Ants normally appear during summer but are hiding from the heat. Cicadas have not yet started their rasping choruses.
Shoppers go at dawn to the biweekly farmers’ market in the walled city and lug away bulging bags of cut-price fruit and vegetables which must be consumed quickly. Apricots, peaches,= and bananas spoil before ripening, salad greens wilt. Cooking is a chore. Many Cypriots subsist on olives and bread and chilled watermelon and salty halloumi cheese.
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A third plague is the fire caused by the combustion of sun, heat, and human activity. In advance of the forest fire season, fire fighters prepare for spontaneous blazes, industrial accidents and arson. Last week a recycling plant burned to the ground, producing toxic pollutants which forced villagers into two days of lockdown.
The fourth plague is dust – imported and local. Fine dust from North Africa veils the Kyrenia mountain range and settles on the land. After six or eight rainless weeks, domestic dust rises from the ground in puffs of wind, collects on and in buildings, insinuates itself into every nook and cranny, and coats vehicles.
The fifth plague is restricted mobility, which prompts people to shun social outings and put off jobs until September.
The sixth is the July-August holiday for doctors, pharmacists, and handymen who provide heathcare, dispense medication and keep air conditioners running. Petrol stations close, forcing drivers to hunt for those still open. Many professionals go abroad for their vacations, leaving those of us who remain at home searching the internet for substitutes.
The seventh plague is the rush of tourists who choose to come during the heatwave season, clogging the republic’s two airports, cramming hotels and crowding beaches, restaurants and pubs in coastal cities. Cypriots, who used to go to the sea in August, are squeezed out.
Four million tourists are expected this year. They contribute about 20 per cent of the republic’s GDP, but could now desert the island for cooler climes.