Europe is bracing itself for “another bulge of searing heat from Africa” as the continent continues to melt in the face of soaring temperatures.
Britons have already been advised to set up emergency alerts when travelling to popular holiday destinations such as Greece and Spain, where wildfires are raging.
Extreme measures have been imposed in some cases with tourist locations like the Acropolis closing due to safety concerns.
Sweltering temperatures have been recorded in countries like Italy, where the island Sardinia is expected to see a high of 46C today.
According to meteorologist John Hammond, the “truly terrifying” conditions are yet to reach their peak.
He told GB News that he expects another bout of heat to make its way from Africa, with southern areas of Europe most affected.
“The longevity of this spell and the extent of this heat which is persisting over the globe is perhaps the most concerning development”, he told Eamonn Holmes and Isabel Webster.
“The peak of the heat will be across the central Mediterranean, parts of Italy will be into the mid, possibly high 40s, 48.8C is the all time record which was only a few years ago, that may be topped in the next few days.
Meteorologist John Hammond says temperatures in Britain are not likely to reach the levels seen last year
GB News
“The heat will ease a little bit as we get towards the end of this week, but it does look as though we will get another bulge of searing heat from Africa into the early part of next week, so there is no sign of rapidly declining temperatures.”
The Met Office have concurred with the suggestion that the heat wave is unlikely to relent soon, saying temperatures, which are around 8-12C above normal, will continue into August.
France’s public health agency said the heat poses a threat to life and is likely to hospitalise or kill “many” people.
The hottest summers on record for the continent were in 2022 and 2021, with estimates suggesting more than 61,000 people died during last summer’s heatwaves.
Hammond added that the temperature trends in recent concerns could pose a “worry” for the tourism industry.
He told GB News: “Lying on a beach in 40C is dangerous. Sitting in the sun in the middle of the day is not a good thing for you.
“I’ve read that many tourist agencies who planned sightseeing trips in the middle of the day are not getting bookings this summer, because people are sensibly avoiding going out in the middle of the day.
“It’s a serious worry going forward for the tourism industry, are people going to be tempted to go to places in the Mediterranean, or are they more likely to go to places across northern parts of Europe where it’s not so searingly hot?”
Despite surging temperatures across the continent, Britain is not experiencing its own heatwave.
The one year anniversary of the UK’s highest ever temperature is tomorrow, but some parts of the country will not even be breaching the 20C mark on this occasion.
40.2C was reached in Heathrow on the UK’s hottest day on record, and Hammond says nothing of the sort is likely to be seen in the near future.
“We’re stuck on the other side of these domes of heat, that’s why it’s so cool and it has been for a few weeks”, he said.
“I have to be honest, there’s not much sign of that changing, so July by many people’s standards could be a bit of a write off.
“We’ve got more wet weather coming this weekend and I can’t see anything in my charts that suggests we’re going to get 40C.”
