Spain Sees First Heatwave with Temperatures Reaching 42ºC
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| The summer has been sizzling for some time in the Costa del sol |
There used to be a saying that you would know when someone
had an iPhone because they would tell you. While the phrase doesn’t quite work
anymore, as many people have iPhones and have stopped bragging about it, there
are some alterations that still hold true. Such as knowing it’s hot in Britain
because every single brit will delight in telling you about it. Every. Single.
One of them.
If you’ve been living under a rock then no doubt you know
that the UK has seen a bit of a heatwave in the past week or so with temperatures
reaching, and sometimes going above, 30 ºC and prompting everyone to show off
how red they’re getting or updating everyone on how they’re enjoying an ice
cream in the park. Don’t forget all the people complaining about the weather
and how they just aren’t cut out for it.
The Brits are kind of cute when it comes to this. They never
get sunshine and warmth to this degree and even though millions of them head
out to Spain for weather just like this they get really confused when it
happens at home rather than abroad.
Speaking of Spain you should spare a thought or two for the
Spanish who are having to endure heatwaves of their own. The Spanish weather
agency Aemet is reporting that temperatures in Spain could reach as high as 42
ºC this week. It’s not incredibly rare but it’s definitely not common for
mid-July.
This may be the time of year when records are broken but any
amount of time where temperatures go above 40 ºC could be classed as a
heatwave, even for a naturally sunny country like Spain.
There are 38 Spanish provinces that found themselves in high
alert for the temperatures, with 13 of them also being classed as “high risk”.
High risk means that the heat could be so bad it can damage health,
particularly for the old and infirm. All the dry air also increases the chances
of forest fires starting and it would hardly be the first time a forest fire was started by a heatwave.
