Several Western European countries, including France, continued to fight, Sunday July 17, against devastating forest fires, the consequence of a heat wave which could bring down several temperature records at the beginning of next week.
The multiplication of these phenomena is a direct consequence of global warming according to scientists, with greenhouse gas emissions increasing in intensity, duration and frequency.
In the south-west of France, the mobilization of firefighters did not weaken Sunday evening in Gironde, more than 11,000 hectares of forests have burned since Tuesday. Météo-France has placed fifteen departments in the west of the country on red “heat wave” vigilance. Monday could be one of the hottest ever recorded in France. “In some areas of the southwest, it will be a heat apocalypse” which could reach 44° in places on Monday, followed by a “hot night”according to the Meteorological Institute.
A maximum of 43.4°C in Spain
In Spain, around 20 forest fires are still raging and remain out of control in different parts of the country, from the south to the far northwest in Galicia, where the fires have destroyed around 4,400 hectares this week, according to the authorities.
In the far south, a fire broke out in the Mijas mountains near the coastal city of Malaga and has so far ravaged nearly 2,000 hectares. It caused the evacuation of more than 3,000 residents, but 2,000 have since been able to return to their homes.
On Sunday, the thermometer reached 39°C in Madrid, 39.7°C in Seville (south), and a maximum of 43.4°C in Don Benito near Badajoz (east). A 50-year-old man died of heatstroke as he walked down the street in Torrejon de Ardoz, near Madrid, according to emergency services. When help arrived, the man was in ” heart failure “ with a body temperature of 40°C. A 60-year-old road worker died the day before in the Spanish capital after also suffering from heat stroke.
Calm in Portugal
Portugal was experiencing a lull: on Sunday, for the first time since July 8, temperatures there did not exceed 40 ° C, according to the national meteorological service (IPMA), after having reached a historic record for July of 47°.
Calm also on the fire front: a single major focus, near Chaves in the far north of the country, was considered active and “virtually under control” on 90% of its perimeter, according to the Portuguese civil protection. Nevertheless, almost all of Portuguese territory presented a risk on Sunday « maximal », ” very high “ or ” raised “ fires, especially the central and northern regions.
According to the latest known report from the Portuguese authorities, the fires of the last week have left two dead and around sixty injured. They have ravaged between 12,000 and 15,000 hectares of forest and brush since the start of the heat wave.
“Red” alert in the UK
In the UK, the National Weather Agency has issued the first-ever ‘red’ alert for extreme heat, warning of a “risk to life”. The Met Office said temperatures in southern England could top 40C for the first time on Monday or Tuesday.
The British government was accused on Sunday of not taking the heat wave seriously, after resigning Prime Minister Boris Johnson missed a crisis meeting on the subject in Downing Street, and his deputy Dominic Raab appeared to happy to have over 40°C in England for the first time.
In the Netherlands, the Netherlands Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) announced on Sunday a National Heat Plan and a smog alert in force from Monday across the country, forecasting a rise in temperatures in the next few days, up to 35°C on Monday in the south and up to 38°C in some places on Tuesday.