France expecting peak temperatures as heatwave hits Europe
Mediterranean countries from the Iberian peninsula through France and Italy to the Balkans and Greece have been sweltering in a heatwave for several days, prompting health warnings and alerts about increased risk of wildfires.
Scientists say human-induced climate change is making such heatwave events more intense, frequent and widespread.
Temperatures in France were expected to hit a peak on Tuesday, according to the Meteo France weather agency, with the highest extreme heat warning in place in 16 departments across the country.
A total of 68 others were on the second-highest level.
Meteo France forecast very high minimums ranging from 20-24 degrees Celsius "or slightly higher in some localised areas, and maximums reaching 36 to 40C with some peaks at 41C".
Operators of the Eiffel Tower shut the summit of the 330-metre high landmark at 1100 GMT on Monday and said it would remain closed on Tuesday and Wednesday "due to the current heatwave".
Access to the first and second floors remained open but operators still urged caution.
"Remember to protect yourself from the sun and stay hydrated. Water fountains are available in the walkways leading to the esplanade," they said.
Across the Ile-de-France region which includes Paris, police said all but the least polluting vehicles would be banned from the roads from 0330 GMT to 2200 GMT because of high ozone pollution levels.
Speed limits of 20 kilometres per hour would also remain in some places.
Across the country, the government said it expected nearly 1,350 schools to be partially or completely shut -- nearly double the number on Monday -- with teachers complaining of overheated and unventilated classrooms making students unwell.
Warnings were issued for young children, older people and those with chronic illnesses.
"Heatwaves are deadly," said Akshay Deoras, a research scientist at the National Centre for Atmospheric Science and Department of Meteorology at the University of Reading, west of London.
"We need to treat extreme heat with the same seriousness we give to dangerous storms."
Roll cloud
Portugal will see some respite on Tuesday after two days on red alert in several regions, including Lisbon, and warnings will be downgraded to orange alert in all but eight areas inland.
But temperatures were still expected to reach 40C in the central city of Castel Branco, Beja and Evora in the south, and 34C in the capital.
The national meteorological agency IPMA said those on the beaches in northern and central Portugal would have seen a rare "roll cloud" blown towards the coast on Monday.
Images shared on social networks showed a huge horizontal cloud heading from the horizon towards the shore, accompanied by a violent gust of wind when it reached land.
"The most frightening thing was the wind and everything becoming dark," one swimmer told online media outlet ZAP. "It was very strange. We all started packing up our things and running.
"It looked like a tsunami."
Similar temperatures in the high 30s to mid 40s were forecast in Spain after they soared to 46C in the south -- a new record for June, according to the national weather agency.
Red alerts have been issued for 18 Italian cities in the coming days, including Rome, Milan, Verona, Perugia and Palermo, as well as across the Adriatic on the Croatian coast and Montenegro.
Italy also experienced another type of extreme weather event on Monday when a flash flood in the northern region of Piedmont caused by heavy rains killed a 70-year-old man.
"We are increasingly faced with emergency situations due to weather events that we used to call exceptional but are now more and more frequent," said the president of the region, Alberto Cirio, on social media.
The Mediterranean Sea itself recorded a new June high of 26.01C on Sunday, according to French weather service scientist Thibault Guinaldo, citing data from EU monitor Copernicus.
The risk of forest fires remains high in a number of Portuguese regions. On Monday night, some 250 firefighters were tackling a blaze in the southern Aljustrel area.
In Turkey, rescuers evacuated more than 50,000 people threatened by a string of wildfires, most from the western province of Izmir, where winds of 120 kilometres per hour fanned the blazes.
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Bangkok Post
a day ago
- Bangkok Post
France expecting peak temperatures as heatwave hits Europe
PARIS - Paris was on red alert for high temperatures on Tuesday, with the top of the Eiffel Tower shut, polluting traffic banned and speed restrictions in place as a searing heatwave gripped Europe. Mediterranean countries from the Iberian peninsula through France and Italy to the Balkans and Greece have been sweltering in a heatwave for several days, prompting health warnings and alerts about increased risk of wildfires. Scientists say human-induced climate change is making such heatwave events more intense, frequent and widespread. Temperatures in France were expected to hit a peak on Tuesday, according to the Meteo France weather agency, with the highest extreme heat warning in place in 16 departments across the country. A total of 68 others were on the second-highest level. Meteo France forecast very high minimums ranging from 20-24 degrees Celsius "or slightly higher in some localised areas, and maximums reaching 36 to 40C with some peaks at 41C". Operators of the Eiffel Tower shut the summit of the 330-metre high landmark at 1100 GMT on Monday and said it would remain closed on Tuesday and Wednesday "due to the current heatwave". Access to the first and second floors remained open but operators still urged caution. "Remember to protect yourself from the sun and stay hydrated. Water fountains are available in the walkways leading to the esplanade," they said. Across the Ile-de-France region which includes Paris, police said all but the least polluting vehicles would be banned from the roads from 0330 GMT to 2200 GMT because of high ozone pollution levels. Speed limits of 20 kilometres per hour would also remain in some places. Across the country, the government said it expected nearly 1,350 schools to be partially or completely shut -- nearly double the number on Monday -- with teachers complaining of overheated and unventilated classrooms making students unwell. Warnings were issued for young children, older people and those with chronic illnesses. "Heatwaves are deadly," said Akshay Deoras, a research scientist at the National Centre for Atmospheric Science and Department of Meteorology at the University of Reading, west of London. "We need to treat extreme heat with the same seriousness we give to dangerous storms." Roll cloud Portugal will see some respite on Tuesday after two days on red alert in several regions, including Lisbon, and warnings will be downgraded to orange alert in all but eight areas inland. But temperatures were still expected to reach 40C in the central city of Castel Branco, Beja and Evora in the south, and 34C in the capital. The national meteorological agency IPMA said those on the beaches in northern and central Portugal would have seen a rare "roll cloud" blown towards the coast on Monday. Images shared on social networks showed a huge horizontal cloud heading from the horizon towards the shore, accompanied by a violent gust of wind when it reached land. "The most frightening thing was the wind and everything becoming dark," one swimmer told online media outlet ZAP. "It was very strange. We all started packing up our things and running. "It looked like a tsunami." Similar temperatures in the high 30s to mid 40s were forecast in Spain after they soared to 46C in the south -- a new record for June, according to the national weather agency. Red alerts have been issued for 18 Italian cities in the coming days, including Rome, Milan, Verona, Perugia and Palermo, as well as across the Adriatic on the Croatian coast and Montenegro. Italy also experienced another type of extreme weather event on Monday when a flash flood in the northern region of Piedmont caused by heavy rains killed a 70-year-old man. "We are increasingly faced with emergency situations due to weather events that we used to call exceptional but are now more and more frequent," said the president of the region, Alberto Cirio, on social media. The Mediterranean Sea itself recorded a new June high of 26.01C on Sunday, according to French weather service scientist Thibault Guinaldo, citing data from EU monitor Copernicus. The risk of forest fires remains high in a number of Portuguese regions. On Monday night, some 250 firefighters were tackling a blaze in the southern Aljustrel area. In Turkey, rescuers evacuated more than 50,000 people threatened by a string of wildfires, most from the western province of Izmir, where winds of 120 kilometres per hour fanned the blazes.
Bangkok Post
a day ago
- Bangkok Post
Southern Europe roasts as temperatures soar
ROME - Spain and Portugal reported record temperatures Monday as Italy and France braced for several more days of a punishing heatwave that has gripped southern Europe and Britain, sparking health and wildfire warnings. The summer's first major heatwave has scorched countries along the Mediterranean's northern coast, leading authorities to urge people to seek shelter and protect the most vulnerable. "This is unprecedented," said France's ecology transition minister, Agnes Pannier-Runacher, as Paris and 15 other departments were placed on "red alert", the highest weather warning level. Ambulances stood ready near tourist hotspots as experts warned that such heatwaves, intensified by climate change, would become more frequent. Firefighters were also on standby after blazes broke out Sunday in France, Turkey and Italy, fed by the heat and strong winds. Cities are offering different ways to stay cool, from free swimming pools in Marseille to free guided tours for the elderly in air-conditioned museums in Venice. - Records - Temperatures in southern Spain soared to 46 degrees Celsius (115 degrees Fahrenheit) on Saturday, a new record for June, the national weather agency said on Monday. The Mediterranean Sea itself was warmer than usual, recording a new June high of 26.01 degrees Celsius on Sunday, according to French weather service scientist Thibault Guinaldo, citing data from EU monitor Copernicus. "It's a bit difficult", said Agathe Lacombe, a tourist from Strasbourg visiting Madrid with her children and grandchildren. "You have to adapt your whole day's planning, do everything in the morning and come home at the hottest times to find a bit of cool," she told AFP. Her daughter-in-law, Valentine Jung, said they hadn't anticipated the heat. "It's a good thing we've got air-conditioning in our accommodation -- we didn't think of that when we booked!" she said. Portugal's national meteorological agency said Monday the temperature had reached 46.6 degrees in Mora on Sunday, which experts cited by local media said was a new June record. Seven regions in central and southern Portugal, including the capital Lisbon, were placed on red alert for the second day running Monday, with fire warnings in many forest areas. In Italy, images posted by local media showed people running into the sea at a beach resort in Baia Domizia near Naples, as flames tore through pinewoods behind them. "I have never experienced anything like this, we were surrounded by flames at least thirty meters high, smoke everywhere," the mayor of nearby Cellole, Guido di Leone, wrote on Facebook. - Peak - In France, the heatwave is due to peak on Tuesday and Wednesday. No such luck for Italy, where the sizzling temperatures will continue to the end of the week and beyond, according to Antonio Spano, founder of the meteorological website. Authorities have issued red alerts for 18 cities across the country over the next few days, including Rome, Milan, Verona, Perugia and Palermo. Italy's opposition parties urged the government Monday to improve conditions in the country's stifling prisons, which are notoriously overcrowded. Scientists say climate change is stoking hotter and more intense heatwaves, particularly in cities where the so-called "urban heat island" effect amplifies temperatures among tightly packed buildings. It has been particularly bad in Florence and Bologna, which have seen "incessant highs, every day for the whole week", Spano told AFP. The school year, which ends Friday in France, has already finished in Spain, Portugal and Italy, where some summer camps are subsidised as part of efforts to keep children cool. - 'Not normal' - In Croatia, the vast majority of the coastline was on red alert, while an extreme temperature alert was issued for Montenegro. And with little relief in sight, the meteorological service in Serbia warned that "severe and extreme drought conditions prevail" in much of the country. In Madrid, where temperatures approached 40C, 32-year-old photographer Diego Radames told AFPTV: "I feel that the heat we're experiencing is not normal for this time of year. "As the years go by, I have the feeling that Madrid is getting hotter and hotter, especially in the city centre," he added. With temperatures set to rise as high as 34 degrees, Britain's Met Office weather service upped the number of amber heat alerts Monday to seven regions of England, where the Wimbledon tennis tournament was getting underway. It is provisionally the hottest start to Wimbledon on record, with 29.7 degrees being recorded at the nearby Kew Gardens, the Met Office said. "Wimbledon when it's really hot is quite sweaty. Last time we were very hot so this time we've got rose in a cooler so we can do a better job," Londoner Sean Tipper, 31, told AFP. Tipper, visiting with his wife, mother and aunt, added that they had also come prepared for the first day of matches with hats and sunglasses, plus "a mini fan and good hope".
Bangkok Post
2 days ago
- Bangkok Post
Tennis fans sizzle as heatwave hits Wimbledon
WIMBLEDON (UNITED KINGDOM) - Tennis devotees armed themselves with hats, sun cream, mini-fans and a sense of humour for the first day of Wimbledon Monday, as the tournament provisionally recorded its hottest ever opener. "If we sweat, we sweat -- we know each other well," laughed Cathy Butcher, 73, arriving with her daughter Helen. The retiree said she had a "dodgy hip and my daughter is heavily pregnant" but that they would just focus on keeping cool and enjoying the day. "We're hoping for a cool breeze" and some "great tennis", added her 31-year old daughter. Meteorologists said a provisional 29.7 degrees Celsius (85.4 Fahrenheit) was recorded at nearby Kew Gardens in southwest London. The previous record for a Wimbledon opening day was set on June 25, 2001 when the mercury tipped 29.3C. Parts of the UK are currently in the grip of a second heatwave in a month, according to weather experts, with temperatures expected to climb further to 34C in London and southeast England Monday. London start-up boss Sean Tipper said he'd made sure to come prepared after failing to heed warnings before. "Wimbledon when it's really hot is quite sweaty," he told AFP on a family day out with his wife, mother and aunt. The 31-year-old said they'd brought hats and sun glasses plus "a mini-fan and good hope". "Last time we were very hot so this time we've got rosé (wine) in a cooler so we can do a better job," he joked. As temperatures began to rise, tournament officials said they were "strongly" advising people without tickets not to travel to the grounds and join the queue. "In both the queue and the grounds there may be periods where shade is not available," a statement said. - Cooling scarves - The hottest June day ever recorded in the UK was 35.6C on June 28, 1976. But Wimbledon is more used to making headlines for the rain than the heat. Tournament chief executive Sally Bolton said they were "absolutely ready for it and actually delighted that it's sunny and not wet like it was last year". For Chilean tennis fan Maria Verdugo, 40, there are pros and cons to enjoying tennis in different weather conditions. "On balance, though, I prefer the sun, it's more exciting," she said, clutching a glass of Pimms with plenty of ice. "It's really sad when it rains because everything looks really dark and you have to take shelter," she said. Under a heat rule to protect players' health, officials will be taking heat stress monitor readings 30 minutes before the start of play and then at 1400 (1300 GMT) and 1700. The rule allows a 10-minute break to be taken at certain points in a match when the heat stress index is at or above 30.1C. Protocols are also in place to look after ball-boys and ball-girls on court who have access to cooling scarves. Some visitors admitted they were already beginning to wilt. "I need a long cold drink, preferably with gin in it, at least then I'd forget how uncomfortable I am," said youth worker Mel Megson as she took shelter under some shrubbery.
