Tourists seek shade in Milan. Photo: Luca Bruno/AP/TT
Red alerts, record notes and special measures for the elderly. The heat has tightened its grip on several European countries - where it is expected to be around 42 degrees in several places during Wednesday and Thursday.
Twelve Italian cities have been subject to the highest heat warning since Tuesday. It is over 40 degrees, but the temperature is expected to rise further.
- It is hellishly hot, says the Spanish tourist Carmen Díaz in Rome.
The zoo in the Italian capital plans to give the animals ice cream later this week, in an attempt to offer coolness.
In Greece, the most visited tourist attraction, the Acropolis in Athens, is closed during the hottest hours of Wednesday due to a heat wave.
At the same time, the temperature in the Adriatic Sea reached an almost record-high 30 degrees in Dubrovnik, Croatia. In Serbia, the state power company reports record consumption due to extensive use of air conditioning.
Municipalities in several cities in Southern Europe and the Balkans have taken special measures to protect the health of the elderly. North Macedonia is facing a heat wave for the second time in July and around 200 forest fires have raged in the country since the beginning of the month.
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Fire 500 meters from the campsite: "There was panic"
Fires The heat wave threatens the sun holiday - fires rage in Croatia Swedish Leif, 64: Pure panic
Mattias Kjellman,
Nelly Kronstrand
Updated 00.29 | Published 00.02
The heat wave in southern Europe is intensifying.
Fires are raging in several countries.
- We were lying on the beach and saw thick smoke rising into the sky. Then people panicked, says Leif Österdahl from Fjugesta, who is on a mobile home holiday in Croatia.
Warm winds from Africa blow in over southern Europe and cause temperatures to rise. It can be up to 44 degrees in several places.
In Croatia, forest fires have spread from Split. North of the city is Swedish Leif Österdahl, 64, from Fjugesta outside Örebro.
- We are at a campsite. When the fire and smoke spread, there was panic. People started packing up their things and evacuating, he says.
Leif Österdahl and family. Photo: Private
Aircraft water bombed
During Thursday, the family arrived at the mobile home campsite in Vranjica.
- We were lying on the beach and saw thick smoke rising into the sky. Then came several airplanes that waterbombed the forest, he says.
Staff at the campsite also started firefighting.
- They pulled out long hoses and watered trees and mobile homes, says Leif Österdahl and continues:
- I was up at the reception and asked if we should also evacuate. They told us that the fire was 500 meters from the campsite, but that the situation was under control. So now it feels calmer, but we sleep with one eye open.
The Red Cross distributes water bottles
Several cities in Greece have established public air-conditioned spaces and banned certain forms of outdoor work during the hottest hours of the day.
The heat wave has made the authorities in Greece decide to close the popular Acropolis rock in Athens, the country's biggest cultural attraction, as a safety measure. This is reported by AP.
Greece's Ministry of Culture ordered the closure, which will apply during the hottest time of the day - from midday and five hours onwards.
The Red Cross was also on hand to hand out water bottles and leaflets with information to the tourists. Here, the fire in Croatia is waterbombed. Photo: Private
Special measures
Many Spanish cities, including Granada and Toledo, are expected to get temperatures up to 44 degrees.
Due to the rising heat, several countries have taken special measures to protect their population and visiting tourists.
The government of Albania has decided to adjust the working hours of civil servants to make it easier for them to work from home.
In Italy, the Ministry of Health has declared the highest heat warning in 13 cities. In the city of Verona, elderly people were asked to stay indoors and sprinklers have been installed in the streets to cool passers-by.
- It really feels like we are in an oven with a hair dryer aimed at us, says Rome visitor Patrizia Valerio, according to Omni.
Forest fires in Turkey. Photo: Sercan Ozkurnazli / AP
Two dead in the fires
The hot and dry weather conditions have led to several forest fires raging in Italy, Turkey, Greece and North Macedonia. This is reported by AP.
Italian authorities say two firefighters died trying to put out a fire in the Basilicata region, in southern Italy.
North Macedonia has been battling dozens of forest fires in the past 24 hours. A large fire spread over an area of approximately 30 kilometers and the neighboring countries of Serbia, Montenegro, Croatia, Romania and Turkey came to the rescue with firefighting aircraft.
In Greece, 42 fires raged across the country on Wednesday.
25 firefighting aircraft were deployed to help ground forces fight the flames of the fire raging in the Corinth region of southern Greece.
Three firefighters suffered minor injuries, while another suffered a heart attack, authorities said.
- We appeal to the public to be especially careful because in the next few days there is a very high risk of outbreaks of serious forest fires. Even a spark can cause a major disaster, government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis said, according to AP.
The heat wave in southern Europe is expected to continue at least until Sunday.
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