Red heat alerts are in place for the north of the Iberian Peninsula. Parts of the Basque Country could see temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius on Sunday, a rare high. This is the fourth heat alert issued in Spain this summer.
Spain's AEMET weather agency has issued red warnings of “extreme danger” for parts of Cantabria and the Basque Country on Sunday, with temperatures expected to rise above 40C, a rare occurrence in the northern Iberian Peninsula – Bilbao has an average maximum of 26C for August. The heat is expected to ease somewhat in the afternoon, but stormy conditions are expected on the coast.
Orange heat warnings are in force in many other regions in the north, south and central parts of the peninsula, while yellow alerts apply in most of the country.
Deadly hot
Saturday turned out to be one of the hottest days of the year. In several provinces, the temperature exceeded 40 degrees Celsius, and in the city of Merida, the thermometers showed almost 42 degrees Celsius. It was also hot, over 39 degrees, in the capital of Spain. Despite this, residents of Madrid and tourists took to the streets, braving the heat. People sought shelter in the shade, but some decided to walk, fanning themselves and sipping cold drinks.
The daily “El Pais” recalled that this is the fourth high temperature alert issued by AEMET this summer. In much of the country, for several weeks, thermometers have been showing values that are dangerous to health. According to data from the Carlos III Health Institute, this summer, the heat has caused 1,388 deaths.
This value, however, may be an underestimate – in the summer of 2023, the Institute estimated the number of heat-related fatalities at around 3,000, but according to a statistical model developed by researchers from the Spanish Higher Scientific Research Council, up to 11,000 people could have died from the heat.
Main image source: PAP/EPA/MARISCAL