Heat warnings spread across Italy and Balkans as deaths mount
Authorities issued red heat alerts across southern Europe as the WHO reported 1,300 excess deaths on the continent since June 21.
By Lucas Ferreira · Science & Environment Writer
3 min read
A severe heatwave is keeping Italy and parts of the Balkans under emergency warnings, straining health systems and raising the threat of wildfires, according to AFP and Reuters. The World Health Organization said 1,300 excess deaths have been reported across Europe since June 21.
Italian authorities put 22 cities under red heat warnings on Monday, stretching from Bolzano in the north to Palermo in Sicily, AFP and Reuters reported. In Rome, where the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul is a public holiday, pilgrims at the Vatican used fans and umbrellas while Pope Leo delivered the Angelus from a balcony.
Croatia also issued red alerts for several areas, its weather service said, including Zagreb and the coastal tourist hubs of Split and Dubrovnik. On the island of Vis, dozens of firefighters and four aircraft were deployed against a blaze in pine forest about 55km, or 35 miles, southwest of Split, according to AFP and Reuters.
Extreme heat also continued across much of the Balkans. Forecasters expected temperatures above 35C, or 95F, in parts of Croatia, Serbia, Romania and Hungary, AFP and Reuters reported.
In Albania, firefighters brought under control a wildfire near the southern village of Klos after flames moved through bushes and olive trees, according to AFP and Reuters. The fires have added pressure on emergency crews already dealing with heat-related risks.
Luca Mercalli, president of the Italian Meteorological Society, told Reuters that very hot weather increases the chance of forest fires, while scattered storms can lower that risk in some places. He said the rainfall was local and would vary sharply by area.
Italian Air Force meteorologist Daniele Mocio said temperatures were expected to remain eight to 10 degrees Celsius above normal for several more days, according to AFP and Reuters. Mercalli also told Reuters that another burst of heat was expected from July 5 or 6, with France, Spain, Germany, Italy, Switzerland and parts of Britain among the areas likely to be affected.
Western Europe has had some relief after record June temperatures, but the wider heatwave that began on June 20 has already disrupted daily life, AFP and Reuters reported. It has put pressure on hospitals, damaged infrastructure and affected power generation.
France has reported 1,000 excess deaths linked to the heatwave, its public health agency said. The agency said most of those who died were older people and warned that the number was expected to increase.
French media reported that funeral homes in Paris and the surrounding region had difficulty handling the number of bodies. The WHO’s continent-wide toll includes excess deaths, a measure that compares deaths during the event with expected levels.
Scientists cited by AFP and Reuters said the heatwave would have been virtually impossible without human-driven climate change. They said extreme overnight temperatures during the week are now 100 times more likely than they were 20 years ago.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus wrote on X on Sunday that Europe is warming faster than any other continent and at twice the global average. He called heat stress a “silent killer” and said many European homes, schools and workplaces were not designed for such temperatures.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.