France and Great Britain face temperature records

Published on: 07/18/2022 – 10:32Modified on: 07/18/2022 – 10:44 The heat wave that is hitting Western Europe could break several temperature records on Monday in France and Great Britain. Britain as firefighters continue to battle violent blazes in several European countries. The situation is particularly critical on the west facade where Météo-France predicts “a heat apocalypse”. The heat is expected to increase in France on Monday July 18, the culmination of a heat wave which is affecting Western Europe, causing numerous forest fires and risking breaking temperature records as far as Great Britain. This wave of heat is the second in barely a month in Europe. The proliferation of these phenomena is a direct consequence of global warming according to scientists, with greenhouse gas emissions increasing both in intensity, duration and frequency. Monday could be one of the hottest ever recorded in France : the maximum temperatures will be everywhere above 30°C, and between 38°C and 40°C in a good part of the country.”The heat is gaining momentum, the heat wave is spreading over the country”, warns the Institut Météo-France, which expects to see many temperature records broken, especially in the west and south-west. “In some areas of the southwest, it will be an apocalypse of heat” which could reach 44°C in places on Monday, followed by a “scorching night”. 04:20 The peak of this 45th heat wave recorded in France since 1947 is expected on the Atlantic coast, particularly in Brittany so far protected by ocean entrances. As a corollary to this heat wave, pollution peaks in the air might appear. England ‘red’ alertIn the UK, the National Weather Agency has issued the first-ever ‘red’ alert for extreme heat, signifying a ‘risk to life’. The mercury could top 40C in southern England for the first time on Monday or Tuesday, the Met Office has warned. The UK government was accused on Sunday of neglecting the situation, after resigning Prime Minister Boris Johnson missed a crisis meeting on the subject in Downing Street, and that its Minister of Justice, Dominic Raab, seemed to be delighted to see for the first time the mercury exceeding 40°C in England. This heat wave passed through Spain there were casualties. On Sunday, a 50-year-old man died of heatstroke, with a body temperature of 40°C, in Torrejon de Ardoz, near Madrid, according to emergency services. A 60-year-old road worker had died the day before in the capital for the same reasons. On Sunday, the thermometer reached 39°C in Madrid, 39.7° in Seville (south), and up to 43.4° C in Don Benito near Badajoz (west). The heat wave leads to forest fires, which have already killed several members of the fire and rescue services. In Spain, around 20 forest fires are still raging and remain out of control in different parts of the country , from the south to the far northwest in Galicia. A firefighter was killed in a fire in Losacio, in the province of Zamora, in northwestern Spain on Sunday, local authorities announced. In France, Portugal, Spain and Greece, thousands of hectares of forest have been burned, and many residents and tourists have had to flee their homes. More than 16,000 holidaymakers evacuated in Gironde The situation is critical in the South West of France. Sunday evening, the blaze which devoured 13,000 hectares of vegetation in the Bordeaux region in six days regained ground thanks to swirling winds, leading to new evacuations. According to firefighters, a total of 16,200 holidaymakers had to pack their bags urgently since Tuesday. Portugal was experiencing a lull: Sunday, for the first time since July 8, temperatures there did not exceed 40°C, according to the national meteorological service (IPMA), after having reached a historic record for July of 47°C on Thursday. Nevertheless, almost all of Portuguese territory presented a “maximum”, “very high” or “high” risk to fires , especially the central and northern regions. Last week’s fires left two dead and 60 injured, and devastated between 12,000 and 15,000 hectares, according to the latest reports. In the Netherlands, the Netherlands Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) announced on Sunday a National Heat Plan and a smog alert in effect from Monday across the country, forecasting a rise in temperatures in the coming days, up to 35 degrees Monday in the south and up to 38 ° C in some places on Tuesday.