‘Hellishly scorching’ Southern Europe sizzles under heat wave as temperatures reach 104F

Rome — The Italian Health Ministry on Tuesday described 12 cities as being hit by the worst heatwave ever, as hot air flowed from Africa into southern Europe and the Balkans and temperatures exceeded 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit), and the worst is yet to come. is also coming.

Croatia reported the highest temperatures ever over the Adriatic Sea, with thermometers in the southern walled city of Dubrovnik, the country’s most popular tourist destination, reaching nearly 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit). In Serbia, the Environmental Energy Company reported record consumption on Tuesday due to air conditioning utility outages.

Municipal governments in several southern European Union and Balkan cities subsequently took measures to protect the aging community, notably civilian coverage crews that dropped water equivalent to canadiens to extinguish wildfires raging in southern Italy and North Macedonia. Asked for airplane.

“It’s extremely hot,” said Carmen Diaz, a tourist from Madrid, trying to cool herself with a fan at lunch in Rome. “These fans help a little, too, but it’s really hot.”

In Greece, municipalities created areas convenient for the family. Some methods of outdoor work were blocked, such as hand work, distribution and development, until the latest date when the temperature reached 40 °C.

The temperature is expected to reach 42 degrees Celsius in various countries on Wednesday and Thursday. Spain’s national weather provider said thermometers in the southern Guadalquivir river basin could reach 44 degrees Celsius in the coming days.

To beat the heat, Rome Zoo planned to trade popsicle relief for animals after the date, when temperatures were forecast to reach 38 degrees Celsius.

For people who came to Coldplay’s live show at Everlasting Town on this date, such negative attitudes have occurred.

“It feels like we’re in an oven and the hair dryer is pointing at us,” said Patrizia Valerio, who flew to Rome from Varese for the band’s final performance on Tuesday night.

Fellow concert-goer Mattia Rossi was more philosophical, saying the deadly storms that hit Italy this summer were proof of the exchange of orders wreaking havoc on the climate systems of the southern Mediterranean.

“In my opinion these are all symptoms of a planet that is suffering,” Rossi said.

In Albania, where temperatures were expected to reach 42 degrees Celsius, a 72-year-old man was found dead on his farm in Mamlij, 200 kilometers (125 miles) south of the capital Tirana and the cause of death is being investigated. Summer, the local Panorama portal reported. There was no immediate confirmation from health officials.

In Tirana, the streets and cafes seemed almost empty, with only a few people going out and using umbrellas to shade themselves. High temperatures and winds have been fueling wildfires from south to north in recent weeks.

Despite the comparatively cool 34 degrees Celsius, Istanbul Municipality issued a heat warning on Tuesday and asked residents – especially the elderly, pregnant women, children and people with health problems – to go out between 10am and 4pm. Advised to avoid going. The advisory said temperatures in Istanbul were expected to remain 3 to 6 degrees above seasonal norms through July 28 and residents were advised to drink plenty of fluids and wear light or cotton clothing.

“It’s usually windy here, like natural air conditioning, so we always come here to cool off,” said pensioner Sami Gunaydin, 62, who was swimming in the Bosporus on Tuesday. “God help those who have no air.” Conditioning.”

For the second time this month, North Macedonia faced a heat wave with temperatures reaching 42 degrees Celsius. Nearly 200 wildfires have raged across the country since the beginning of the month, with one firefighter injured so far. The government has declared a state of crisis for one month.

For Serbia, Croatia and Bosnia, it is the second week that temperatures have hovered around 40 degrees Celsius, with the Bosnian city of Mostar recording temperatures this high for the sixth consecutive day. Meteorologists said the heat wave is expected to peak on Tuesday and gradually subside by the end of the week.

Romania and neighboring Moldova have also been hit by intense heat last week, with temperatures in the two countries’ capitals, Bucharest and Chisinau, respectively, exceeding 40 C this week.

In Italy, the Civil Protection Service said it received 18 calls for help on Monday to extinguish wildfires burning in several southern regions.

The Health Ministry has placed 12 cities – from Trieste in the north to Rome in the center – under red alert heat warning, the highest level of heat emergency. In cities under such warnings, everyone – not just the elderly or small children – is urged to stay indoors during the hottest parts of the day and avoid strenuous outdoor exercise and heavy meals.

Palermo, Sicily, was expected to join the list of red-bulletin cities on Wednesday, the health ministry said.

By the end of the week, a heat wave was sweltering across much of Greece, with temperatures expected to reach 42 degrees Celsius in some areas. The heat wave was predicted to peak on Wednesday and Thursday, particularly affecting central and western regions. and northern Greece, where temperatures can reach up to 43 C.

The scorching heat hitting southern Europe has so far spared Paris, which is set to host the Olympics later this month. The temperature on Tuesday was a relatively cool 22 degrees Celsius, although temperatures were expected to rise later in the week and fall again after the weekend.

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Elena Bekatoros in Athens, Lazar Semini in Tirana, Albania, and Joseph Wilson in Barcelona, ​​Spain, contributed to this report.

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AP’s Order Practice Safety here: https://apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment