Extreme heat was forecast across the globe yesterday, as wildfires raged and health warnings were in place in parts of Asia, Europe and North America.
Firefighters battled blazes in parts of Greece and the Canary Islands, while Spain issued heat alerts and some children in Italy’s Sardinia were told to stay away from sports.
From California to China, authorities warned of the health dangers brought by searing temperatures, urging people to drink water and shelter from the sun.
Photo: Reuters
“You can’t be in the street, it’s horrible,” said Lidia Rodriguez, 27, in Madrid.
Temperature records tumbled around the world, with new heat streaks set in China and the US, and fresh highs in France.
Beijing broke a 23-year-old record with 27 consecutive days of temperatures above 35°C, forecasters said.
Phoenix, Arizona, broke a similar record, in place for 49 years, with its 19th consecutive day of temperatures of 43.3°C or higher, weather officials said.
In southern France, a record 29.5°C was recorded in the Alpine ski resort of Alpe d’Huez, while 40.6°C was recorded for the first time in Verdun in the foothills of the Pyrenees.
In a stark reminder of the effects of global warming, the UN’s World Meteorological Agency (WMO) said the trend showed “no signs of decreasing.”
“These events will continue to grow in intensity, and the world needs to prepare for more intense heat waves,” John Nairn, a senior extreme heat adviser at the WMO told reporters in Geneva, Switzerland.
Northwest of the Greek capital, Athens, columns of smoke loomed over the forest of Dervenohoria, where one of several fires around the capital and beyond was still burning.
Fire spokesman Yannis Artopios called it “a difficult day,” with temperatures of 44°C expected today.
In the Canary Islands, about 400 firefighters battled a blaze that has ravaged 3,500 hectares of forest and forced 4,000 residents to evacuate, with authorities warning residents to wear masks outside due to poor air quality.
Temperatures were unforgiving in Italy and in Spain, where three regions were put under hot weather red alerts.
The Italian islands of Sardinia and Sicily have been forecast to possibly surpass a continent-wide record of 48.8°C recorded in Sicily in August 2021.
Tens of millions of Americans experienced dangerous heat levels on Tuesday. In the town of San Angelo, Texas, where temperatures were expected to reach 40°C to 42°C, the National Weather Service said it was “running out of ways to say that it’s gonna be hot out there today.”
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