Anticyclone Lucifer: Italy on alert for record high temperatures and risk of forest fires | Heatwave in the Mediterranean

The Heat wave which is registered in the Mediterranean concerns several countries in the region, including Italy, which goes through the hottest week of the year, with historic temperatures exceeding 45 degrees and alerts in the south and center-west of the country for possible Forest fires.

Wednesday, the city of Syracuse, on the island of Sicily, in southern Italy, it reached 48.8 degrees, according to the Agrometeorological Information Service of the regional government (SIAS), a figure that could represent a new heat record in Europe since it would exceed the 48 degrees experienced by Athens in 1977.

During the day, in addition, the Sicilian firefighters received more than 200 fire warnings.

Although authorities have said the most tense hours appear to be over, they have urged not to let your guard down since the heat will not begin to subside until Friday.

This Thursday, according to forecasts, the maximums were expected in the south-central part of the island, with temperatures between 42 and 44 degrees, peaks that could reach 46 near the cities of Trapani and Agrigento. In Sardinia, another Italian island, the maximum was 43.1 degrees and it was estimated that on Thursday it would be between 35 and 41.

The situation is also worrying in other countries on the southern shore of the Mediterranean, such as Morocco or Algeria, where the thermometers reached the 47 degrees, in the middle of Forest fires that are spreading and have already killed dozens.

In the north shore of the mediterraneanMeanwhile, countries like Spain, France and Greece are also gearing up for the heatwave and forest fires that usually accompany it.

What is happening in the rest of Italy

The rest of the southern regions remain on alert. Calabria, which has touched 42 degrees, expects this Thursday to maximums of 38 degrees, like Campania, with its capital in Naples, and Lazio, in Rome, where it reached 40 degrees on Wednesday.

Faced with this scenario, the Civil Protection of Rome allowed several points of bottle of water for citizens and tourists passing through the city.

Tuscany, a region north of Rome, also expected highs of 39 degrees in some cities.

Greece, Spain and France

After two weeks of extreme heat – with temperatures exceeding 46 degrees – and the country’s worst wave of fires, which left more than 90,000 hectares burned, Greece woke up on Thursday to thunderstorms that brought relief to the population.

The slight drop in temperature and the rains have been in the center of the island of Evia, the hardest hit by the fire, where firefighters are trying to quell the epidemics emerging in different parts of the north of the island.

In Spain There is an alert for temperatures that could exceed 42 degrees this Thursday and 44 in the coming days, especially in the regions of Aragon and Catalonia (northeast), which are at extreme risk. In some places, authorities have banned or restricted the use of agricultural machinery and access to forests and other natural landscapes.

In France Peaks of 40 degrees are also expected in the southeast, so more than 20 departments have been placed under surveillance.