Southeast Europe ‘hot’ with high temperatures and waves heat wave continue.
During the day, the mercury in the Balkans reaches 40 degrees, which is 7 degrees above average.
Nights also remain high, although they bring at least some relief.
Especially in densely urbanized areas such as Athens, temperatures reach 30 degrees Celsius at night due to the urban heat island effect (UHI). watchman.
During a heat wave, UHI amplifies urban temperatures because heat-absorbing materials, reduced vegetation and human activity trap the sun’s heat overnight, leading to increased health risks and energy demand
Several countries’ national weather services have issued extreme heat warnings for this week. The intense heat is expected to gradually ease towards the end of the week, with storms and cold weather expected in the Balkans by the weekend.
Fire hazard
Officials are also warning of increased fire risk due to prolonged dry and hot conditions combined with low humidity levels. Last week, Albanian authorities asked the EU for help to help fight forest fires in Dropoli, about 250 kilometers south of the capital, Tirana. Over the weekend, many fires also broke out in Greece, the Balkans and various regions of Eastern Europe.
Greek officials said the country experienced its worst fire danger in two decades this summer after a mild and mostly dry winter and spring that fueled vegetation. Drier-than-normal conditions in recent months have also reduced some reservoirs to their lowest levels in a decade, raising the risk of possible water restrictions during the peak tourist season, particularly on some Greek islands.
The early formation of storms such as Alberto, Beryl, and Chris in late June and early July was aided by warm waters and a lack of dry air in the mid-atmosphere.
However, the Atlantic basin has been relatively quiet since Beryl moved through the Caribbean to the Gulf of Mexico. At times, dry Saharan air can prevent the formation of tropical disturbances and cyclones that rely on the moist atmosphere for storms to develop, leading to reduced tropical weather activity in the Atlantic Ocean. This will obviously happen in the coming weeks when there will be fewer cyclones due to persistent dry air and dust from the Sahara.
“It’s Hell”
Europe is the fastest-warming continent on Earth, with temperatures rising nearly twice the global average. Euronews.
Italian authorities declared a red alert on Thursday in seven cities, mostly in the central parts of the country, as well as in the capital Rome and Trieste in the northeast. Hot conditions are exacerbated by humidity and could affect healthy people as well as those with health problems, officials warned.
Similar warnings were issued in neighboring Croatia, further east and south. Croatia’s main tourist resort, Dubrovnik, on the southern Adriatic Sea, recorded a high of 28 degrees Celsius in the morning, suggesting there will be no relief when the sun goes down.
This week, forest fires were reported in Albania near the border with Greece, as well as in Bosnia and Italy. Several fires broke out in Corinthia in southern Greece and Lesvos in the eastern Aegean on Thursday.
A similar warning was issued on Thursday around the capital Athens and other parts of central Greece, and on Friday in the northeast of the country.
Greek authorities said the country faced its highest fire risk in two decades this summer after a mild, mostly rainless winter and spring that dried up vegetation.
2023 is one of Greece’s worst summers for wildfires, with thousands forced to flee their homes, causing untold damage to wildlife and biodiversity.