Italian holiday island set to see 48 degrees this week following Cyprus wildfires
The heatwave, dubbed the third 'African blaze' of the summer, is expected to bring record-breaking temperatures to Sicily and Sardinia throughout July and August.
The extreme heat is also expected to hit other parts of Italy, with temperatures in central regions like Rome and Florence nearing 36C, reports El País.
Authorities have warned temperatures will sit above average throughout the week, with highs of 42C expected in Italy's southern regions, such as Puglia, Basilicata, Sardinia, and Sicily.
The heatwave is expected to push temperatures close to the European record of 48.8C, which was recorded in Floridia, near Syracuse, Sicily, in August 2021, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
Filippo Anelli, president of Italy's National Federation of the Orders of Physicians, ordered 'maximum attention' to vulnerable groups, such as the elderly and people with chronic illnesses during the heatwave.
Meanwhile, northern Italy is bracing for unstable weather conditions due to the clash between incoming African heat and a low-pressure system over northern Europe.
This collision is likely to result in severe thunderstorms, heavy rainfall, and hailstorms, particularly over the Alps and Prealps.
Europe is in the grip of an unforgiving bout of extreme weather that is battering popular holiday destinations just as British tourists prepare to head abroad for the summer.
Searing heatwaves, devastating wildfires and violent storms are sweeping the continent, threatening lives, scorching landscapes and putting emergency services under immense pressure.
Tourist hotspots in Italy and Spain are contending with several punishing blazes, with hundreds of firefighters and water-carrying aircraft dispatched to quell the flames.
Sicily battled six separate wildfires last week, with soaring temperatures leading authorities to issue red alert warnings for four provinces this week.
Sicily's Forestry Corps and Civil Protection workers were engaged last weekend as they worked to extinguish the fires, with six water-dropping aircraft drafted into control the flames.
Yesterday, two people were killed and hundreds evacuated as a massive wildfire tore through southern Cyprus, destroying homes and threatening communities amid an intense heatwave.
At least 100 square kilometres (39 square miles) was razed to the ground in a wine–producing region north of the city of Limassol, near popular tourist hotspots, after the blaze broke out around midday on Wednesday, with several fronts still active on Thursday morning.
Two people have died after they were burned alive in their car. Local reports say police are now attempting to identify the pair who were trying to escape in the vehicle. At least 10 people were injured, two of them seriously, police said.
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- Daily Mail
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