MADRID: The third official heatwave of the summer has begun in Spain, with a heat alarm declared by the national weather service AEMET in effect on Monday in 12 of the country’s 17 autonomous communities, German news agency (dpa) quoted local media reports.
The result was deserted streets and crowded beaches in many places, broadcaster RTVE and other Spanish media reported. The few people who dared to go out on the streets of Madrid on Monday, which had an announced maximum temperature of 39 degrees Celsius in the shade, tried to cool off with fans, under umbrellas and using cold water bottles.
The second heatwave with temperatures of almost 45 degrees had only ended in Spain on Thursday; The third is now expected to last until Wednesday. It will feel like being in an “oven”, the newspaper AS headlined.
In contrast to the first two heatwaves, this time the focus is not only on the region of Andalusia and parts of Catalonia and Navarre, but also for the first time on the popular tourist island of Mallorca, with particularly high temperatures forecast.
It was already very hot on the Balearic island on Monday, with 36 degrees measured at the central Playa de Palma beach in the afternoon. But the worst is yet to come – for Tuesday, AEMET has declared the highest red alert level for the north, northeast and the centre of the island. – BERNAMA-dpa
