40 degrees and more These vacation resorts are now facing the threat of sweltering heat shock

It's really hot in southern Europe and in some places the peak has not yet been reached. It's over 40 degrees from Spain to Greece. Parts of the USA are also suffering from extreme heat.

A heat dome lies over southern Europe. Temperatures of 40 degrees Celsius and above make life difficult for people. Dried-out soil and wind are increasing the risk of forest fires in some places. An overview.

Spain: over 40 degrees until Saturday

The higher the humidity, the more difficult it is for people to cope with the heat. That's why the 35 degrees in Mallorca seem more oppressive for tourists there than the 41 degrees expected today in Seville and Zaragoza. In Cordoba, weather services are even expecting 43 degrees. Pictures from Madrid show that at least one thermometer reads 45 degrees.

The Ministry of the Interior is giving the population tips on how to protect themselves from the heat, which can be life-threatening for those who are already weakened.

Temperatures in Spain are expected to be below 40 degrees on Sunday.

Italy: 40 degrees in Sicily

Italy is groaning under a heatwave. The Mediterranean country's Ministry of Health has declared the highest heat warning level for 17 major cities - including the capital Rome, Florence and Bologna. This means that even healthy people could suffer negative physical effects. The air force weather service is forecasting temperatures of around 38 degrees in Rome and Florence and between 36 and 37 degrees in Bologna and Perugia.

It could also be particularly hot in some areas of the southern Italian regions of Apulia and Basilicata as well as on the Mediterranean island of Sicily. Some places there could even break the 40 degree mark. The high pressure area "Caronte" has already been bringing high temperatures to Italy for several days. The relatively high humidity in particular is making the high temperatures in the cities difficult to bear.

According to meteorologists, the heatwave is set to continue until Sunday. After that, a slight cooling with more bearable temperatures is expected in some regions, especially in the north. This could be accompanied by storms and heavy thunderstorms.

Greece: Acropolis and Olympia closed

The heatwave in Greece has already lasted for over two weeks. All archaeological sites were therefore closed from midday until 5 pm. The rush . The site of Olympia is also inaccessible, as are numerous other ruins of the Ancient Greeks.

A heatwave that has lasted since almost the beginning of July reached a new peak in large parts of Greece on Thursday. Because local temperatures are expected to exceed 43 degrees, all archaeological sites will be closed between noon and 5 p.m. local time, the Ministry of Culture announced. The sites affected include Athens' landmark, the Acropolis, and the ancient site of Olympia.

The civil defense warned of a high risk of fire in most regions of central and southern Greece. The smallest fire could turn into a major blaze due to the drought and the strong winds currently blowing around the Aegean, said a spokesman for the fire department on Greek television.

The situation is somewhat better on Crete and the Aegean islands. According to the weather office, the sea breeze is cooling the temperatures there to around 35 degrees.

The Ministry of Labor ordered all delivery services to be suspended during the hot afternoon hours. Work in the construction sector was also suspended at midday for the next five hours. According to the Ministry of Labor, those who can are allowed to work from home. Meteorologists said on the radio that the temperature under the sun could reach more than 60 degrees. This is life-threatening, they said.

North Macedonia: Forest fire on the border with Greece

North Macedonia has been battling forest and bush fires for days with international help. With drought, wind and extreme heat of around 40 degrees Celsius in the shade, fires are also repeatedly breaking out in the mountains. On Wednesday, Romania joined the helpers with two aircraft, including one that dropped five-ton water bombs, said the head of the North Macedonian Civil Protection, Stojance Angelov, as reported by the internet newspaper "mkd.mk".

In addition, the highway border crossing to Greece near Bogorodica had been closed for security reasons because a bush fire was raging on the Greek side near Evzoni.

Angelov went on to say that operations are currently focused on the region around the town of Radovis in the south-east and near Gevgelija close to the Greek border. In Evzoni, Greece, twelve fire engines and a helicopter are in action, the local fire department reported.

In times of drought, a heatwave with hot and dry winds, for example, can contribute to fires becoming more intense and larger within a very short space of time, making them more difficult to fight. Vegetation dries out faster in hot weather and soil moisture is lost more quickly. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the risk of forest fires is increasing as a result of global warming.

Croatia: Forest fire close to tourist resort on the coast

Dozens of firefighters and three firefighting aircraft battled a forest fire near the popular Croatian vacation resort of Trogir on Thursday evening. "There is no threat to houses and tourists," explained the chief fire department commander Slavko Tucakovic.

Around 70 firefighters had prevented the fire from spreading to houses and a hotel complex, according to the national firefighters' association. The fire on the Adriatic coast was under control, the firefighters' association continued.

In the village of Seget Donji, the fire spread to a large wooded area by the sea near a campsite, according to a report on state television. Like the other Balkan countries, Croatia is suffering from a prolonged heat wave with temperatures above 37 degrees Celsius.

Mediterranean almost 30 degrees in places

There is good news for those who find it difficult to get into cold water even in hot weather: The Mediterranean is currently warmer than it has ever been. According to Meteonews, the surface water in the Adriatic and the central and eastern Mediterranean is between 26 and almost 30 degrees.

Visitors to the beaches on the Aegean and in the western Mediterranean can expect bathing temperatures of 22 to 26 degrees. In the sea between Greece and Turkey, a north wind called Meltemi often blows in summer. The Mistral blows along the French coast. This wind mixes the warm surface water with the deeper, cooler layers, which lowers the overall temperature. In Switzerland, this effect can often be observed at lakes when a thunderstorm or a strong wind current mixes up a lake that has only warmed up on the surface and cools it down by several degrees within hours.

In the Aegean, the cold deep current from the Black Sea is an additional factor that cools the sea. According to Meteonews, the temperature differences between the Aegean and the central Mediterranean correspond to the long-term average. Even the chronically cooler regions will be warmer than usual in summer 2024.

USA: heat and tornadoes

In the Midwest and on the East Coast of the USA, severe storms and extreme heat are keeping people on tenterhooks.

Several tornadoes have been reported in the past two days, and even employees of the authorities in the metropolis of Chicago had to briefly seek shelter from a hurricane. The Midwest includes several states in the center and northeast of the USA west of the east coast.

Local media reported uprooted trees and toppled electricity pylons. There were initially no reports of injuries. According to NBC, tornadoes are extremely rare in Chicago. The last time a tornado was confirmed in the city was in August 2020. In addition to Illinois, the neighboring state of Indiana was also affected by the storms. According to the website poweroutage.us, more than 500,000 households in the two states lost power.

The storms were triggered by cool air masses from Canada, which collided with a so-called heat dome - an area of high pressure that traps the heat as if under a large dome - over the center and east of the USA. The US weather service is still warning of "extremely dangerous and potentially deadly" heat in the region until Wednesday. On Tuesday, heat warnings were in place for more than 118 million people - more than a third of the population in the USA.

According to scientists, climate change is exacerbating drought, heat and extreme weather. According to the US weather service, the number of tornadoes has multiplied in recent years.

With material from SDA and DPA