France has been affected since Tuesday by its neighbor Spain, which has spent several days in stifling temperatures that exacerbated the drought, as well as the heatwave from the Maghreb over Spain, which affected the southwestern part of the country before spreading. in northern Italy.
Météo-France expects the weather to remain scorching in most of France on Friday as the heatwave spreads to the northern regions and intensifies further in the west and south.
In the afternoon, Météo-France forecasts 36 to 39°C in these regions, with peaks of 40°C.
Heat waves attributed to global warming are increasing worldwide.
This wave “has an aggravating effect on the dryness of the soil” and emphasizes the “risk of wildfire” after a particularly dry spring and winter, Météo-France meteorologist Olivier Proust told AFP.
This is the scenario facing neighboring Spain, which has been suffocating with temperatures exceeding 40ºC in some places for six days.
The most worrying fire is near Baldomar in Lleida province (Catalunya, northeast), where the fire has already destroyed 500 hectares of forest but has “potential” to spread to 20,000 hectares, according to the regional government.
No one has been evacuated in the area at this stage, but authorities have put some residential areas on alert as a precaution.
Temperatures of up to 41ºC are expected in Lleida this Thursday, according to the Spanish Meteorological Agency (Aemet), which predicts temperatures above 40ºC in Badajoz (southwest) and Zaragoza (northeast).
Two more bushfires were active in Catalonia this morning in Solsonés and Tierra Alta, burning around 300 hectares in both cases, according to the Catalonian government.
Another fire broke out in the Sierra de la Culebra in Zamora (centre).
Unusual for this time of year in Spain, this heatwave has caused an explosion of temperatures of up to 43ºC across the country since last weekend.
According to Aemet, it should last until Saturday.
Spain has already experienced four extreme heat events in the last ten months, according to the weather agency, which has experienced the warmest May since the turn of the century this year.
The scientists explain that the proliferation of heat waves, particularly in Europe, is a direct result of global warming, as greenhouse gas emissions increase both the intensity, duration and frequency of these phenomena.
Faced with temperatures that put bodies to the test, some companies, particularly in the construction industry, adapt by modulating schedules.
In France, municipalities are taking measures to reassure residents. In Bordeaux (southwest), nebulizers were placed in what are known as “furnaces”.
In Lyon, the city council extended the working hours of parks and gardens.
In northern Italy, authorities rationalized water in some towns on the Padana plain, and the Lombardy region was preparing to declare a state of emergency amid record droughts threatening crops.
The Po Plain, which runs through the north of the country and where agriculture is intense, is facing the worst drought in the last 70 years. According to the Observatório do Rio Po, the peninsula’s largest reservoir, some areas have not had rain for more than 110 days.
source: Noticias
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