While it’s cooling down in North Rhine-Westphalia, the heat in southern Europe continues to cause problems. Spain struggles with temperatures around 40 degrees, at night the thermometer hardly drops below 30 degrees. The Italian weather service fears “one of the most intense heat waves of all time”. On Tuesday it could even be 43 degrees hot in Rome.
Forest fire risk increases significantly
That’s exactly what hundreds of firefighters are experiencing on the Spanish holiday island of La Palma. Local media reports that more than 4,700 hectares of land have burned in a few hours. Attempts are being made to contain the fires with the help of fire-fighting aircraft and helicopters. Authorities say the fire started near the town of Puntagorda. More than 4,200 people had to leave their homes. Nobody was injured.
But there was also good news on Sunday: The weather conditions have now become much better, a spokesman for the island government emphasized. There is a significantly higher humidity and also lower temperatures. This will help the fire brigade fight the flames.
All of Spain, including its islands, is suffering from unusual heat and drought this year. According to official figures, around 66,000 hectares of land have been burned across the country since the beginning of the year.
Warnings of forest fires also in Greece
And in Greece, too, the civil defense warns that the risk of forest fires is very high due to the extreme drought and the winds. Fires can spread rapidly under these conditions. There will be extreme temperatures again next week. Meteorologists expect up to 44 degrees for Athens.
The situation remains tense because of the heat. Some archaeological sites are closed – the Acropolis in Athens also remains closed for the time being. The Red Cross is on duty to distribute water to tourists.