In Europe, extreme heat and strong forest fires. Hundreds of people died

In Spain, the air temperature is +45, in Portugal +47

In July, abnormal heat was established in Europe. The air temperature in some regions rose above 40 degrees. In Spain, Portugal, France and other countries, forest fires began - the authorities evacuate thousands of residents from fire hazardous areas. Because of the heat, hundreds of people died, many European Union countries introduced a state of emergency. Experts associate what is happening with climate change.

Spain

In some areas of Spain, the air temperature reached 45 degrees. In the period from July 10 to 15, about 360 people died due to the heat, according to the Carlos III health Institute. On July 17, 36 fires were registered in Spain, 24 of them were actively distributed, writes the newspaper El Pais. In total, more than 20 thousand hectares of forest were destroyed, more than two thousand people are evacuated from fire hazardous areas. This is the second wave of extreme heat in Spain - the previous one was in mid -June. The temperature then rose above 40 degrees, more than 800 people died.

Portugal

In Portugal, the air temperature reached 47 degrees. On July 16, the Ministry of Health said that in the previous seven days 659 people died due to the heat. Strong fires continue in the northern and central parts of the country. On July 17, The Guardian reported that the number of active fires decreased from 20 to 11. From the beginning of the year to mid -June, about 40 thousand hectares of forest suffered from natural fires, which is three times more than the same period last year, the Portuguese Institute for Nature and Forest Protection notes . At the end of June, the National Institute of Meteorology reported that a strong drought was noted on 96% of the territory of continental Portugal.

France

In France, in 51 departments (in total 101, including overseas), an “orange” level of anxiety was declared due to abnormal heat. Another 15 have already raised the level of danger to the maximum-“red”, in particular, due to a possible increase in temperature to 42 degrees. In the Gironda Department, firefighters extinguished a fire for several days, the area of ​​which as of July 18 was 14 thousand hectares, the BFMTV French television channel reports . 1700 people and nine aircraft were involved in extinguishing the fire. More than 16 thousand people, including tourists, were evacuated from dangerous areas.

United Kingdom

The authorities of Great Britain on July 15 introduced the highest level of danger in the country due to the heat. Meteorologists warn that in some areas the temperature can reach 41 degrees, which will become a maximum since 2019, when a temperature of 38.7 degrees has been recorded in Cambridge. The authorities distribute information about the safety rules in hot weather, and railway companies urge people to abandon travel these days. They reported that part of the trains will be canceled. In some areas, the country on the roads began to scatter stone crumbs to prevent the canvas from melt, and the Hammersmite bridge was wrapped in foil so that the designs of the bridge did not overheat. Many British schools decided to close for the period of heat, and some hospitals canceled planned techniques and operations these days. A number of public events were also canceled in the country.

Other European countries

Record temperatures and numerous forest fires also record in other European countries. On July 17, a press release from the Greece Fire Service said that 51 fires began in the country over the past 24 hours. In Croatia , a fire began near the city of Shibenik, the most difficult situation developed in the area of ​​the village of Zaton, where 20 houses burned down, and local residents were evacuated. Fires began in Italy, reports Sky News. The air temperature in the country may soon exceed 40 degrees. In northern Italy, the strongest drought over the past 70 years.