Heatwave stifles Europe: Britain hits record-breaking 40° C, forest fires in Spain, France
Europe is under the grip of unprecedented heatwave conditions, with Spain, Portugal, France and Greece witnessing multiple forestfires and Britain witnessing a record-breaking 40-degree Celcius on Tuesday.
For a week, Spain has recorded more than 30 wildfires with its Castile and Leon and Galicia towns being hard hit, news agency Reuters reported.
Over 6,000 people from 32 villages of Zamora province have been evacuated the Spanish authorities and nearly 70,000 hectares of land were destroyed in the blazes.
In Portugal, hundreds of firefighters are battling forest fires with the largest at Murça. As per reports, Portugal authorities have put on alert in at least 50 cities. An elderly couple was found dead inside a burned car in Murca on Monday, as per Reuters.
A burning tree is seen in La Teste-de-Buch forest destroyed a major fire near Dune du Pilat as wildfires continue to spread in the Gironde region of southwestern France, July 19, 2022. (REUTERS Photo)
France has evacuated over 34,000 people as its Gironde area continues to burn. Over 19,300 hectares of land has been burned. Greece reported 73 fires in the past 24 hours and as per the authorities, all are doused.
Meanwhile, in Britain, the authorities have declared a “national emergency” with flight operations at London airport suspended and trains put off track. They have advised people not to swim in open. Britain recorded its highest ever temperature of 40C on Tuesday.
People bathe in a sea, during a heatwave in Brighton, Britain, July 19, 2022. (REUTERS Photo)
The previous record was 38.7 degree C recorded in 2019. The authorities also fear its infrastructure, particularly the Victorian, cannot withstand such heat.
Altogether, the scorching heat in a relatively colder Europe brings climate change more into focus. As per the United Nations report, the global temperature is now about 1.2 degree Celcius above pre-industrial levels leading to droughts, floods, high tides, extreme heatwave and wildfires, and many other manmade disasters.
(With inputs from Reuters)
