Hot weekend for Europe, officials warn of extreme fire risk
MATTHIAS BEIN/DPA VIA ASSOCIATED PRESS
Eva-Maria Gödde from North Rhine-Westphalia cools off in the midday sun with a glass full of ice cubes, in Harz, Germany, today.
MICHAEL BUHOLZER/KEYSTONE VIA ASSOCIATED PRESS
People swim in the river Limmat at Letten, in Zurich, Switzerland, Saturday, June 18, 2022. People flocked to parks and pools across Western Europe, today, for a bit of respite from an early heat wave that saw the mercury rise above 40 Cs (104 F) in France and Spain, and highs of 38 C (100.4 F) in Germany.
BERLIN >> People flocked to parks and pools across Western Europe today for a bit of respite from an early heat wave that saw the mercury rise above 104 F in France and Spain.
In Germany, where highs of 100.4 F were expected, the health minister urged vulnerable groups to stay hydrated.
“Heat and too little fluids can be deadly for older people,” Karl Lauterbach tweeted. “We need to keep an eye on the elderly and those with disabilities today.”
Meanwhile, officials warned of wildfires across the western Mediterranean region as high temperatures and a long dry spell made for combustible conditions.
The European Commission’s Copernicus Emergency Management Service said the fire risk was “extreme” and “very extreme” in much of Spain, the Rhone river valley in France, Sardinia, Sicily and parts of mainland Italy.
The 27-nation bloc has put 12 firefighting planes and a helicopter on standby to assist countries struggling with major blazes this summer.
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Meteorologists in France described the situation as “really exceptional” and predicted that a peak of 109.4 F could be reached today before thunderstorms bring cooler weather in from the Atlantic.
Experts say the early heat wave is a sign of what’s to come as climate change makes extreme temperatures normally seen only in July and August more likely in June too.
