Heatwave from hell! Lucifer blazes a trail over Europe
HOLIDAYMAKERS are facing a dangerous heatwave in southern Europe, where temperatures have soared to 110F (43C).
Nicknamed ‘Lucifer’, it has struck in popular destinations from Tuscany to Corfu, causing wildfires and droughts, while also threatening to hit yields of olives, cheese and wine.
Tourists have been warned by the Met Office to keep out of the sun and stay close to the coast and swimming pools, following the deaths of elderly people in Italy and Romania.
Warnings of ‘dangerous’ weather are in place for 18 countries, including Spain, Italy, Poland and France. Popular holiday destinations caught in the blazing heat include Majorca, Vienna and the Greek islands Corfu and Crete.
Most of Europe has been unbearably hot for the last two months, with Dynasty star Dame Joan Collins among hundreds forced to flee wildfires in the French Riviera last month.
Similar blazes were recorded in Croatia, Portugal and Spain. But while most have died down, the heatwave is back with a vengeance as the jetstream draws in stifling air from Africa above the Med – while steering showers and cooler conditions towards Britain.
Met Office forecaster Emma Sharples said: ‘This extreme heat will have caught some holidaymakers out and they are advised to stay out of the midday sun abroad from 10am to 2pm.
‘They should stay hydrated and would be advised to stay close to the coast and swimming pools to cool down.’
At the height of the heatwave on Thursday, temperatures peaked at 110F (43.4C) in Batman, Turkey, and 108F (42.8C) in Cordoba, a city in the southern Spanish region of Andalusia.
Earlier this week a wildfire claimed the life of a 79-year- old woman, found dead in a field beside her home in Sant’Omero in the central region of Abruzzo of Italy, who had been overcome by flames that engulfed two hectares of surrounding farmland.
When the mercury hit 100F (38.6C) in Tuscany, a section of the Via Aurelia coastal motorway which runs northwards from Rome had to be closed for several hours following a major fire.
The Italian health ministry has 26 major towns and cities on maximum heat alert, after admissions to hospital emergency units spiked by 15 per cent in recent days.
Meanwhile tourists were unable to visit a world famous collection of Renaissance art after the Uffizi art gallery in Florence shut its doors following an air conditioning breakdown. Rome has turned off its famous fountains because of the drought, with Italian olive yields in parts of the country forecast to be 50 per cent lower than normal this autumn. The scarcity of water has cut sheep’s milk production by 30 per cent in other areas, raising fears of knockon effects for the production of one of Italy’s most famous cheeses, pecorino.
The country’s wine grape harvest, which begins at this time of year with pinot and chardonnay, has had its earliest start in a decade due to the effects of the summer’s heatwave and drought.
‘Every year, we need to pay close attention to the vine. There is no longer certainty on when to harvest,’ said Claudio Faccoli, a wine- maker whose label produces 55,000 bottles a year. We need to keep an eye on the climatic situation.’
The Coldiretti agricultural lobby said Italian wine production is expected to be up to 15 per cent lower than last year as a result.
In Albania, 300 firefighters and soldiers have struggled to contain as many as 75 forest fires, which are also raging across Macedonia.
European weather hub Meteoalarm issued its highest grade ‘red’ warnings for 11 countries yesterday, including Ukraine, Poland and Hungary – where keepers at Budapest Zoo provided huge ice blocks and water melons to cool down their two polar bears.
The heatwave is hoped to come to an end in most of southern Europe by Monday, as cooler air moves in from the Atlantic. But it will move to the Balkans, where it is expected to continue until the end of next week.
A spokesman for the British Association of Travel Agents said: ‘Holidaymakers are being advised to make sure they take sensible precautions to avoid sunstroke and other serious problems that can result from over exposure to heat and powerful sunshine.’