Millions of people in the Northern Hemisphere are suffering from extreme heat this summer as the world appears to be headed for the hottest July on record.
As the temperature plummets, experts point fingers at climate change caused by burning of fossil fuels and say that global warming is playing a key role in the devastating weather.
Already 11 days into the heat wave, Greece’s national meteorological institute warned that relief was still days away, making it the longest heat wave the country has ever seen.
“According to the data, we will probably go through 16-17 days of heat wave, which has never happened before in our country,” said Kostas Lagovardos, director of research. National observatory, told ERT Television Saturday.
The previous record for a heatwave in Greece was set in 1987, when scorching temperatures of over 39C lasted for 11 days.
In the southern United States, nearly 80 million Americans will swelter in temperatures of 41 degrees Celsius and above this weekend, according to the National Weather Service (nws) Said.
The hottest heat in the country, up to 46C, is forecast in Phoenix, Arizona, where three weeks in a row have seen temperatures over 43C breaking records.
Meanwhile, tourists are flocking to post selfies with the temperature display outside the visitor center at Death Valley National Park on the border between California and Nevada.
Many are hoping it will break the world record of 56.7C, which was set in July 1913, but according to many meteorologists this was probably the result of a faulty measurement.
Despite this, July 2023 is on track to be the warmest month – not only since records began, but also in “hundreds, if not thousands, of years”, leading NASA said climatologist Gavin Schmidt.
The effects cannot be attributed solely to the El Niño weather pattern, which has “really just emerged” and is not expected to strengthen until the end of the year.
El Niño is associated with increased sea surface temperatures in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean.
Schmidt said the trend of extreme heat is expected to continue, “and the reason we think it will continue is because we are continuing to put greenhouse gases into the atmosphere”.
Greece, which is battling dozens of wildfires, warned people not to venture out unnecessarily due to the intense heat.
The extraordinary temperatures also mean that major tourist sites such as the Acropolis will be closed during the hottest part of the day.
“This weekend is at risk of being the warmest July in the last 50 years,” said Panagiotis Giannopoulos, a meteorologist at state broadcaster ERT.
The state weather service reported on Saturday that sea temperatures were two to three degrees above normal, while the maximum temperature of 42.6C recorded by the Akrotiri weather station on Friday is expected to top out.
The temperature in the city is expected to be up to 44 degrees Celsius on Sunday, while the central region of Thessaly will be up to 45 degrees Celsius.
The temperature is taking a toll on people’s health.
A 46-year-old man has reportedly died of heatstroke in the central Greek island of Evia. Chalkida The hospital said that cardio-respiratory failure after exposure to high temperature appears to be the cause.
Emergency health officials told the state broadcaster that at least 38 patients with heatstroke had been found in the past three days, while hospitals were also seeing cases of fainting and other heat-related conditions.
Meanwhile officials said firefighters were still battling 79 wildfires across the country, with their spokesman Vassilios Vathrakoyanis saying Greece would remain on alert through the weekend.
A fire raging on the island of Rhodes forced dozens of people to evacuate their homes late on Friday, officials said, as Slovak firefighters arrived to provide reinforcements.
Greece is one of the countries battling prolonged extreme heat around the world in recent times.