Extreme heat has ravaged Italy and the Balkans as wildfire fears grow Weather News

Older people remain at the highest risk as climate change causes more deaths in Europe.

A Record-breaking heat has strengthened its grip on Italy and the Balkans, killing hundreds of people, raising fears of wildfires and disrupting daily life across Europe.

In Italy, authorities placed 22 cities under red alerts on Monday, from Bolzano in the north to Palermo on the southern island of Sicily.

At the Vatican, pilgrims used fans and umbrellas to protect themselves from the heat as Pope Leo delivered his Angelus message on the balcony on the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul, a holiday in Rome.

Croatia’s weather service issued red alerts for several areas, including the capital, Zagreb, and the tourist cities of Split and Dubrovnik. On the Adriatic island of Vis, dozens of firefighters, supported by four aircraft, battled a blaze burning in pine forests about 55km (35 miles) southwest of Split.

Much of the Balkans remained extremely hot, with temperatures exceeding 35C (95F) across Croatia, Serbia, Romania and Hungary.

In neighboring Albania, firefighters were able to extinguish a wildfire that tore through bushes and olive trees near the southern village of Klos.

“With high temperatures the risk of forest fires increases, but we are also seeing more storms, which obviously reduces the risk,” the president of the Italian Meteorological Society Luca Mercalli told Reuters. He also said that typhoons occur in different areas and the amount of rain varies from place to place.

Forecasters say warming is far from over. Italian Air Force meteorologist Daniele Mocio said the current temperature is expected to continue, being 8 to 10 degrees Celsius above average for several days.

Although Western Europe has seen some relief after the June heat, Mercalli said further heat is expected from July 5 or 6, affecting France, Spain, Germany, Italy, Switzerland and parts of Britain.

The heatwave in Europe, which started on June 20, has already disrupted health systems, caused damage and disrupted electricity.

The World Health Organization says so 1,300 More deaths have been reported across the country since June 21.

France says more than 1,000 people have died from the heat. His health agency said most of the victims are elderly and warned that the number is expected to rise.

French media reported that funeral homes in Paris and surrounding areas were struggling to cope with the influx of bodies.

Scientists said the warming would have been “impossible” without human-caused climate change, which has made nighttime temperatures this week 100 times higher than they would have been two decades ago.

Writing on X Sunday, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Europe is the hottest continent on Earth, warming twice as much as the rest of the world.

He wrote: “Heat stress is often called the “silent killer.” “European houses, workplaces and schools were not built because of this heat.”