2023-04-27 13:28:00
The exceptionally early heat wave experienced by Spain will peak from Thursday, a situation that worries the authorities in this country on the front line of global warming in Europe. “It is very likely that the peak of this episode will be reached on Thursday and Friday,” said the Spanish meteorological agency (Aemet), before a drop in temperatures from Saturday.
The thermometer could thus rise to 32-34 degrees on Thursday in the south of the country with peaks around 37 degrees in the valley of the Guadalquivir river, in Andalusia (south), according to Aemet which revised its forecasts downwards after having mentioned 40 degrees at the start of the week. At more than 36 or 37 degrees, records were already broken locally on Wednesday in the provinces of Seville or Cordoba and others could be Thursday or Friday.
In Seville, where fans and umbrellas are out, front-line employees are already harassed by the hot weather. “It’s extremely hot, we’re looking for shade and water at all times,” says Juan Benito, a 33-year-old waiter in the Andalusian capital. “By its intensity and its early nature, this episode” observed since Monday “falls within the framework of the consequences of climate change”, underlined Wednesday Ruben Del Campo, spokesperson for Aemet, according to whom “it is possible that April 2023 (…) is one of the two hottest April months in the historical series”.
Advanced anti-heat plans
In this context, the Spanish authorities are forced to adapt and the Ministry of Health has proposed to the regions, with broad powers, to bring forward to May 15 the activation of their heat plan previously fixed for June 1. These plans determine the activation of the different levels of risk for the population, particularly vulnerable, depending on the temperatures.
That of Madrid has already announced on Wednesday the activation of its plan which notably provides for the possibility of adapting school timetables, which is usually done from June. As a result of climate change, episodes of exceptionally high temperatures have multiplied in recent years in Spain, a European country on the front line with nearly 75% of its territory at risk of desertification according to the UN.
The country thus experienced its hottest year on record last year, with several heat waves starting in May, according to Aemet. According to a study by the Polytechnic University of Barcelona published on Tuesday, the number of days of the year with summer temperatures fell in Spain from 90 to 145 between 1971 and 2022. Also during this period, episodes of daytime heat waves are multiplied by 7 and nights by almost 11 while the temperature has increased by an average of 3.54°C in the main Spanish cities.
In 2022: Faced with drought, Spain questions its agricultural model
‘Very high’ risk of fire
Beyond the temperatures, Spain, which exports a large part of its agricultural production to the rest of Europe, is facing a catastrophic drought which worries farmers and authorities. According to Coag, the main farmers’ union, 60% of Spanish agricultural land is currently “asphyxiated” by the lack of rainfall.
Dry soils and very high temperatures constitute an explosive cocktail which increases the risk of fires. Most of the territory was therefore placed on alert on Thursday for “very high” or “extreme” risk of fires by the Aemet while the Ministry of the Interior convened an exceptional coordination meeting with the regions on this subject. Friday.
Spain is already on a record for burned areas since the start of the year, with more than 54,000 hectares compared to 17,126 hectares over the same period of 2022, a record year for fires, according to the System European Forest Fire Information Center (Effis) Neighboring Portugal is also affected by this early heat wave. Temperatures, which are “10 to 15 degrees Celsius above normal”, could reach 37 degrees there on Thursday after a maximum of 35.4 degrees reached Wednesday in the south of the country, according to the national meteorological institute.
Read also: In Catalonia where the drought makes us shudder, solutions are emerging
1682609439
#Spain #faces #record #heat #wave