The epicenter of Europe’s heat wave is shifting again to fire-ravaged Greece, as temperatures are set to climb back up to 48C (118.4F) by Wednesday.
(Bloomberg) — The epicenter of Europe’s heat wave is shifting again to fire-ravaged Greece, as temperatures are set to climb back up to 48C (118.4F) by Wednesday.
The fire on Rhodes, the Greek island from which thousands of tourists were evacuated over the past three days, is being contained as jets and helicopters support efforts to halt a blaze spreading toward the village of Gennadi. Strong winds are hampering efforts and the maximum wildfire alert is also in place for the island of Crete.
There is a high risk of wildfires across the Mediterranean after the world’s hottest ever June was followed by record heat this month. Extreme weather is devastating southern Europe this summer, from hailstorms and a tornado in Italy, to heavy rainfall and strong winds that left several dead in parts of western Balkans.
Fossil fuel emissions are driving global warming, which is increasing the intensity of summer heat waves across the Northern Hemisphere from Phoenix to Turpan in China. That extreme heat would have been “virtually impossible” without climate change, according to scientists. Still many leaders are pushing back against curbing greenhouse gas emissions at a faster pace.
In Italy, there’s little relief from combating the heat, even as it’s forecast to cool slightly in the coming days. A temperature of 48C was reported on Sardinia on Monday, just below the European high of 48.8C, set in Sicily two years ago.
In some areas, the heat has been punctuated by violent storms with destructive hail.
“The new reality is that we have to face very different emergencies at the same time,” Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on local radio on Tuesday. “Not a single fireman has gone on holiday, we are doing our best to secure the territory.”
On Sicily, Palermo airport will be closed until at least 11 a.m. due to a fire on the surrounding hills. A storm in Milan disrupted transport, while a Delta Air Lines Inc. flight from the city to New York was diverted on Monday to Rome after hail damaged the nose and wings of the plane.
Italy’s labor minister will meet union representatives this morning in Rome to discuss potential measures to protect workers in extreme weather conditions.
In Athens, there is a cabinet meeting to discuss the crisis, with 125 wildfires in the past 24 hours. Firefighters are still trying to quell a blaze on Corfu, while an evacuation order was given early Tuesday for the village of Platanistos on the island of Evia, east of the capital.
“We are at war,” Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis told lawmakers in parliament on Monday.
More moderate conditions are spreading across Northern Europe as a cooler weather system moves in. Temperatures in the UK, Germany, France and Nordic countries will be below seasonal averages. Frankfurt will peak at 18.5C, 5.5C below the norm, according to forecaster Maxar Technologies Inc.
–With assistance from Flavia Rotondi and Chiara Albanese.
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