Flames burn in a pine forest in Linguaglossa, on the slopes of Mount Etna, near Catania, Sicily, Italy.
The worst heat wave in a decade is spreading across southern Europe, sparking wildfires in many countries.
Experts have linked the wildfires to record-high temperatures as Europe is in the midst of a heatwave caused by a heat dome, a high-pressure bubble that traps heat within a certain area, Xinhua news agency reports. Is.
The temperature in Syracuse, Italy, reached 48.8 degrees Celsius on Wednesday. The World Meteorological Organization said it would examine the validity of this temperature report. If verified, it would be the highest temperature ever recorded in Europe.
Greece has been one of the worst-affected countries, with more than 100,000 hectares of forestry and farmland burning in less than two weeks, according to the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS).
The Greek government said there had been about 600 fires since the beginning of August. The fires broke out as Greece was roiled by the most intense and prolonged heat wave in nearly 30 years, with temperatures reaching 42 to 45 degrees Celsius in many parts of the country.
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Thursday that the country had plunged into the biggest ecological disaster of the past few decades, as several blazes swept across the country recently driven by extended heatwaves.
In Spain, record high electricity prices have been recorded almost every day since Monday, coinciding with a heatwave that has soared temperatures in the capital of Madrid and several major cities by nearly 40 degrees Celsius.
On Thursday, dozens of firefighters supported by four water-dropping aircraft were battling a fire in the northeastern province of Tarragona. Local officials said the fire destroyed about 40 hectares of protected forest.
Two smaller fires were also burning in the northern wine-producing region of La Rioja and the northeastern province of Zaragoza. In Albania, the country’s defense ministry said on Friday that there were six active fires across the country, but the situation was under control.
In Malta, the southern European island country was also hit by a strong heatwave, with temperatures reaching 43 °C in some places. According to the country’s Department of Civil Defense, Malta recorded 513 fire incidents between June 1 and August 10.
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