Firefighters in Albania Battle Blazes
Italy issues red alerts for most cities, Hungary urges power cuts, and Britain's harvest is on track to be the worst since 1984.
Italy issues red alerts for most cities, Hungary urges power cuts, and Britain's harvest is on track to be the worst since 1984.
Albanian firefighters battled a blaze in the southern region of Mallakaster on Wednesday that forced the evacuation of around fifteen families, along with their livestock and pets, as the heatwave continues to grip large parts of southern and eastern Europe.
Europe, the fastest-warming continent in the world, has been hit by record heat and devastating wildfires this summer, with France and Spain particularly hard hit. The focus of the heatwave has now shifted, with Italy issuing red alerts for most of its major cities as temperatures climb to 40 degrees Celsius in some areas.
In Albania, ground and air forces have been deployed, according to emergency services speaking to Reuters, to prevent the fire from reaching homes in the village of Riban. Meanwhile, efforts continue to contain another fire, likely sparked by a lightning strike in the mountainous area south of the Albanian city of Gjirokastra.
In neighboring Greece, a fire suspected to have been caused by a spark from power lines and fanned by summer winds has damaged homes, prompted emergency evacuations, and destroyed thousands of hectares of farmland near a popular resort northwest of Athens. The fire is largely contained, but hundreds of firefighters with six helicopters remain on the scene to prevent it from flaring up again.
The heatwave has also hit eastern Europe. Hungarian businesses and households have reduced electricity consumption this week following a government appeal to ease pressure on the power grid amid severe drought. In Budapest, the peak of the heatwave is expected on Wednesday and Thursday, with temperatures ranging from 40 to 42 degrees Celsius.
The hot, dry summer is taking a heavy toll on agriculture. According to an analysis published on Wednesday, Britain's grain harvest is on track to be the worst since comparable records began in 1984, as crops wither after one of the driest and warmest spring-summer periods on record.
