Temperatures rose to almost 47C in southern Italy on Wednesday, sparking concerns over the extreme heat. Factory workers threatened to strike, while wildfires raged in Greece and coastal waters in Spain broke records. In Sicily, where the European record of 48.8C was set in August 2021, the mercury climbed to almost 47C in the area between Mazara del Vallo and Sciacca, according to data from ilMeteo.it. Temperatures in Sardinia reached 46C, while Rome peaked at 38C.
“This is apocalyptic,” said Claudia Bivona, a 57-year-old teacher in Trapani. “Something we had never experienced before. And it will get worse and worse. I’m thinking of the elderly and also of animals. What is happening is not normal.” Nuccia Orlando, a nurse at a hospital in the Sicilian province of Caltanissetta, echoed her concerns, saying, “We are melting. This heat is absurd. My car’s thermometer registered 52C inside the vehicle today. Of course, I had left it in the sun. But still, we are talking about 52C.”
Italy’s health minister, Orazio Schillaci, activated an information line amid concerns about deaths from heat-related illnesses. A man in his 60s is believed to have died of a heat-related illness after fainting in his bakery near the northern city of Padua, and a 44-year-old road worker died in Milan last week. Schillaci advised individuals to protect themselves against the heat by drinking lots of water, opting for a diet based on vegetables and fresh fruit, and avoiding excessive consumption of fatty foods and alcohol. He also emphasized the need for special attention to be paid to the most fragile, elderly, and children.
Greece HeatwaveThe carmaker Stellantis said it was monitoring the situation at its Pomigliano d’Arco plant near Naples, where workers were sent home early on Tuesday due to the heat. Workers at the battery maker Magneti Marelli threatened an eight-hour strike at a plant in Sulmona, in the central Abruzzo region, citing the “asphyxiating heat” as a risk to their lives. The CGIL union expressed concern for agricultural workers, who are mostly seasonal workers from outside the EU, and construction workers, as well. Farm workers in Marsica, Abruzzo, are working 4am-11am shifts to avoid the hottest hours.
In Greece, staff at the Acropolis and other ancient sites will stop work for four hours a day from Thursday in protest at working conditions. The Unesco-listed Acropolis had been restricted for three days from last Friday, but access was restored on Monday before a new heatwave was predicted from Thursday. The PEYFA union said measures were taken to protect the health of security staff and visitors.
Meanwhile, wildfires continued to rage in Greece, often fanned by strong winds around Athens. Water bombers flown in from Italy and France joined the operation to extinguish the fires, which have forced thousands of people to flee their homes. In Spain, coastal waters hit a record high for this time of year, with temperatures reaching 24.6C, 2.2C higher than the average for the season. The situation is even more worrying since the summer is far from over, according to Rubén del Campo, an Aemet spokesperson. “There is still room for the sea to warm even more,” he said.