Europe heatwave – live: Holidaymakers evacuated in Greece wildfires as extreme heat set to last until August

Holidaymakers have been evacuated from at least six seaside communities in Greece as their homes are threatened by wildfires amid the extreme heat hitting Europe that will likely last until August. Gusts of wind up to 45 mph are pushing flames through hillside scrub and pine forests parched by extreme heat near Athens, leading authorities to issue the evacuation orders on Monday. Meanwhile, the World Meteorological Organization warned that the heatwave affecting the Mediterranean is forecast to intensify by mid-week, including in Greece, and is likely to continue into August in some places. New records have already been set for specific weather stations in parts of the northern hemisphere and new national records may also be set, the UN agency’s website said. Another anticyclone dubbed ‘Charon’, who in Greek mythology was the ferryman of the dead, advanced into the region from north Africa on Sunday and could lift temperatures well above 45C in parts of Italy, Spain and Greece. The hottest temperature recorded in Europe was 48.8C in Sicily, in August 2021. It comes as extreme temperatures are breaking records worldwide as both the US and China saw the mercury crossing 50C on Sunday. Key Points Wildfires threaten seaside homes outside Greek capital after heatwave Heatwave ‘likely to continue into August’, says UN New heat storm ‘Charon’ stretches into southern Europe 16 red alerts issued for Italy La Palma residents ‘refusing to leave homes’ as thousands evacuated Over 50C temperatures recorded in China and US Southern Europe weather forecast today 04:07 , Stuti Mishra Southern European countries grappling with intense heat could see the mercury soar even further starting today as forecasts show temperatures rising as high as 46C in some parts. Italy, Spain and Greece are forecast to see temperatures above 40C in large parts as a second heatwave named Charon engulfs the region. Sardinia and Sicily are expected to see temperatures above 45C or even as high as 48C, which, if it happens, could threaten the 48.8C record for Europe’s highest-ever temperature. Weather maps show the heatwave intensifying in the middle of the week before a brief respite by the end of the week in some parts of Italy. Here’s a country-wise breakdown and temperature forecast: UK government plan to prepare for climate change ‘deeply disappointing’ Monday 17 July 2023 22:30 , Matt Drake Meanwhile, in the UK, leaked government plans for adapting the UK to the effects of climate change have been labelled as “deeply disappointing”. The latest National Adaptation Programme had been expected to be published on Tuesday, but was released on Monday following a leak to The Guardian newspaper. The 140-page document offers a five-year plan that ministers said would boost resilience and help protect people, homes and businesses from heatwaves, droughts, floods and the other damaging impacts of climate change. It also commits the Ministry of Justice to research the impact of climate on staff and prisoner behaviour, with pilots planned by 2027. On the natural environment, Defra also pointed to plans for environmental land management schemes and local nature recovery strategies. But the plan was criticised for failing to properly grapple with adaptation planning. Green Party MP Caroline Lucas called it “deeply disappointing and really lacking in ambition”. WHO director-general warns that the Climate Crisis is ‘not a warning’ Monday 17 July 2023 21:42 , Matt Drake Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director-general of the World Health Organisation, wrote on Twitter: “In many parts of the world, today is predicted to be the hottest day on record. ‘And these records have already been broken a few times this year. Heatwaves put our health and lives at risk. “The #ClimateCrisis is not a warning. It’s happening. I urge world leaders to act now.’ It comes as many parts of Italy are poised to hit 45C on Tuesday. Watch: New Delhi flooded as river water levels break 40-year record Monday 17 July 2023 20:42 , Andy Gregory EU debating whether to set higher climate target ahead of Cop28, draft document suggests Monday 17 July 2023 20:17 , Andy Gregory European Union members are debating whether to update their climate pledge ahead of this year’s Cop28 summit, to show they expect to exceed their current goal for CO2 emission cuts, according to a draft document seen by Reuters. The bloc has one of the most ambitious climate targets among major economies, having enshrined in law a commitment to cut its net greenhouse gas emissions 55 per cent by 2030 compared with 1990 levels. The document said EU countries may notify the UN that they can reach a 57 per cent emissions cut. The text was in brackets, indicating it is not yet agreed by all countries, and the improved goal would only occur if member states comply with recently-passed EU policies to expand renewables and impose higher fees on polluting firms. Greek rescuers help monks free monastery threatened by flames Monday 17 July 2023 19:48 , Andy Gregory In Greece, where two wildfires near Athens forced the evacuation of at least six seaside communities, the army, police forces and volunteer rescuers are reported to have freed retirees from their homes, rescued horses from a stable, and helped monks flee a monastery threatened by the flames. One of the houses hit by the wildfire in Loutraki (AP) ‘It’s terrifying’: Spain braces for worst of heatwave Monday 17 July 2023 19:31 , Andy Gregory In the latest of The Independent’s ‘In Focus’ series, Graham Keeley reports from Madrid: For Kinvara Vaughan, the prospect of record temperatures hitting the Mediterranean from Tuesday fills her with dread. ‘I saw the headline: heat storm heading for Europe this week. It is terrifying. We are doing a spectacular job destroying the planet,’ she says from her home in Marbella, southern Spain. Parts of southern Europe could hit its hottest ever temperature on Italy’s islands of Sicily and Sardinia, where a high of 48C is predicted, according to the European Space Agency. Spain’s Aemet weather agency said the heatwave this week ‘will affect a large part of the countries bordering the Mediterranean’, with temperatures in some southern areas of Spain exceeding 42C. The power of the sun is very real for Vaughan, given a discovery by her doctors earlier this year. ‘They discovered three moles with stage one melanoma, and they could treat them. They said that I would not need chemotherapy. It was a shock as I had not been for a check-up for over three years. I was so lucky, ‘ the 47-year-old half-British, half-Canadian equestrian centre manager tells The Independent . Read the full article with Independent Premium: ‘It’s terrifying’: Spain braces for worst of heatwave Monday 17 July 2023 18:49 , Andy Gregory Canadian wildfire smoke has returned to parts of the United States this week, our senior climate correspondent Louise Boyle reports. Air quality alerts were issued for the northern High Plains, the Midwest, Great Lakes, central Tennessee, North Carolina and the Northeast through Tuesday as northwesterly winds pushed smoke down from fires raging across Canada. Smoke concentrations will recede over central parts of the US on Tuesday but may still cause poor air quality along the East Coast, the National Weather Service (NWS) reported. The higher concentrations of smoke will result in unhealthy air quality for sensitive groups cause by high levels of particulate matter PM2.5. Experts warn of workers exposed to potentially fatal heat Monday 17 July 2023 18:27 , Andy Gregory Experts have warned of the potentially deadly impacts on workers exposed to extreme heat, as they criticised insufficient health and safety protections despite the increasing risk. ‘It is clear that in many parts of the world, workers in high exposure sectors such as agriculture and construction are at increasing risk from heat stress, yet there are still insufficient health and safety protections,’ said Professor Elizabeth Robinson, of the London School of Economics. ‘There is still insufficient understanding of how worker health is being harmed, the extent to which workers are able to adapt to the reality of increasing frequency and intensity of extreme heat, and the extent to which employers are taking action to protect workers’ health.’ Dr Shouro Dasgupta, also of LSE’s Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change, added: ‘Heatwaves result in increased risk of discomfort, of limitations in physical functions and capabilities, and ultimately also of injuries and heat-related illnesses such as heat cramps, and heat exhaustion, to potentially fatal heat stroke. ‘Workers might think about changing what they wear, taking additional breaks, and increasing rehydration.’ Man detained on suspicion of arson as wildfires force large evacuations near Athens Monday 17 July 2023 17:48 , Andy Gregory Hundreds of children have been evacuated from a summer camp and villagers forced to leave their homes as two separate wildfires fanned by strong winds damaged houses to the southeast and west of Athens, authorities said. The blaze that broke out in the village of Kouvaras, just 17 miles from the Greek capital, spread fast amid erratic winds, a Greek fire service official said. Some 200 firemen with the help of around 20 soldiers, 68 engines and 16 aircraft were trying to control the flames, the official added. Greek television showed several houses and cars gutted by the blaze and thick white smoke billowing from burning vegetation. ‘Due to high winds, the blaze spread across 12 kilometres in two hours,’ a Greek Fire Service spokesperson said, adding that police had detained a person suspected of arson. Fire brigade services have been placed on standby in the wider Athens area. A firefighter tries to extinguish a wildfire at Kouvaras area in Attica (EPA/YANNIS KOLESIDIS) A house caught ablaze during a wildfire at the Lagonisi area (EPA/YANNIS KOLESIDIS) Around 1,200 children from a summer camp and residents of a rehabilitation centre were evacuated in another wildfire close to the seaside resort of Loutraki, about 50 miles west of Athens, a local mayor told Greek television. Hot African air has turned Italy into ‘giant pizza oven’, says expert Monday 17 July 2023 17:29 , Andy Gregory Hot air which has pushed from Africa into southern Europe has turned Italy into ‘a giant pizza oven’, with heat in warm sea, land and air is continuing to build, an expert has said – as she warned that forecast climate impacts appear to be happening simultaneously across the world. ‘The bubble of hot air that has inflated over southern Europe has turned Italy and surrounding countries into a giant pizza oven,’ said Professor Hannah Cloke, of the University of Reading. ‘The hot air which pushed in from Africa is now staying put, with settled high pressure conditions meaning that heat in warm sea, land and air continues to build. ‘It is not surprising that different parts of the northern hemisphere have heatwaves during our summer months, but the combined picture is starting to look like climate change impacts all happening at the same time, as scientists have forecast for decades. We are now living through these impacts, rather than predicting them in a computer simulation of the future climate. ‘Sea level rise, melting ice, extreme heatwaves, intense rainfall, wildfires, drought and floods are cropping up in many parts of the world at the same time. In previous heatwaves, such as Britain’s hot summer of 1976, other parts of the globe had a relatively cool year. Today’s extremes of weather are increasingly throwing everything everywhere all at once.’ La Palma residents allowed to return to homes after 4,000 evacuated Monday 17 July 2023 17:05 , Andy Gregory In Spain, a wildfire that started on Saturday on the Canary island of La Palma continued to burn out of control on Monday, although authorities said weaker winds and cooler temperatures in the area are helping firefighters combat it. The blaze has burned some 460 square kilometres – an area larger than the city of Glasgow – of mostly woody hill land, and some 20 houses and other buildings. More than 4,000 residents were evacuated from their homes on Saturday, but were allowed to return as of late on Sunday. Here is some footage of the devastation: Watch live as wildfires rage and smoke rises across coastal towns in Greece Monday 17 July 2023 16:49 , Andy Gregory Our video team has a live view of Kalyvia in Greece , where wildfires have sparked evacuations of coastal towns and smoke continued to rise across the sky on Monday. Heatwave ‘likely to continue into August’, says UN Monday 17 July 2023 15:57 , Tara Cobham The heatwave affecting the Mediterranean is forecast to intensify by mid-week and is likely to continue into August in some places, said the World Meteorological Organization said on Monday. New records have already been set for specific weather stations in parts of the northern hemisphere and new national records may also be set, the UN agency’s website said. “The heat is forecast to intensify by the middle of the week (19 July) in parts of the Mediterranean, including Greece and Turkey,” it said. “A further continuation into August is likely.” Wildfires threaten seaside homes outside Greek capital after heatwave Monday 17 July 2023 15:16 , Tara Cobham Greek authorities issued evacuation orders for at least six seaside communities Monday as wildfires threatened vacation homes near Athens, with gusts of wind up to 70 kph (45 mph) pushing flames through hillside scrub and pine forests parched by extreme heat. Water-dropping planes and helicopters tackled the flames near Lagonisi, some 40 kilometers (25 miles) southeast of the capital, in an area with thousands of seaside vacation homes. The fire service reported a second large wildfire in a wooded area near the resort town of Loutraki, some 90 kilometers (55 miles) west of Athens, where a children’s summer camp and rehabilitation center for seniors were evacuated, local officials said. Greater Athens and much of southern Greece were on the second-highest alert for wildfires Monday and Tuesday following a four-day heat wave that eased over the weekend. More heatwave temperatures are expected later in the week. Residents and visitors in areas affected by the two fires received cell phone alerts from the Civil Protection Ministry. Loutraki Mayor Giorgos Gionis said municipal workers were assisting seniors in the evacuations, adding that the operation has been impeded by cell phone reception outages. The flames reached the edges of settlements in Loutraki and Lagonisi, causing damage to some homes, but the fire service did not have an initial official assessment of the damage. Expert concerned about pregnant women, babies, children and elderly in heat Monday 17 July 2023 14:30 , Tara Cobham An expert has expressed her concerns about the impact of heat on pregnant women, young babies and children, as well as the elderly. Dr Chloe Brimicombe, Climate Scientist and Extreme Heat Researcher, University of Graz, said: ‘Heat does not just cause excess death amongst the elderly. I’m most worried about the impact of heat on pregnant women, young babies and children. We see a ri