Southern Europe braces for second heat storm in a week, yellow alert issued in Cyprus

Southern Europe is bracing for a second heat storm in a week, with Italy, Greece and Spain, along with Morocco and other Mediterranean countries, being told temperature records could be broken on Tuesday.

A new anticyclone that pushed into the region from north Africa on Sunday could lift temperatures above the record 48.8C seen in Sicily in August 2021, and follows last week’s Cerberus heatwave.

The European Space Agency (ESA) said this week could bring the hottest temperatures ever recorded in Europe in a heatwave named Charon after the Greek mythological boatman who ferries souls to the underworld.

The human-caused climate crisis is supercharging extreme weather around the world, driving more frequent and more deadly disasters, from heatwaves to floods to wildfires.

On Monday, the World Meteorological Organization said the planet experienced the hottest few days on record in the first few days of July.

A study recently published in Nature Medicine said more than 60,000 people died because of last year’s summer heatwaves across Europe, with the highest mortality rates seen in Italy, Greece, Spain and Portugal.

Italy is one of the European countries most vulnerable to the effects of climate change, with extreme weather events within the past 13 months responsible for more than 50 deaths.

Meanwhile, the weather will be hot and blazing with sunshine in Cyprus on Monday.

The Cyprus Meteorology Service issued a yellow alert – in effect till 6pm.

The winds will be moderate, initially northerly to north-easterly turning westerly to north-westerly, force 3 to 4 Beaufort.

The sea will be smooth to slight.

The temperature will rise to 41 C inland, 35 C in coastal areas and 33 C in the mountains.