Extreme heat splits Italy: over 44C in south, heavy downpours in north

The stifling heat that has gripped Italy all summer shows no sign of easing, with temperatures above 44C in the south and islands, and forecasters warning the sultry weather will persist into September. The fifth heatwave has reached its peak on Friday, splitting Italy in two, with temperatures in central and southern regions and on the islands exceeding 40°C, around ten degrees above the seasonal average, while severe thunderstorms are due to reach the north in the next few hours. Humidity is making matters worse, pushing the perceived temperature at least five degrees higher than the actual reading, and bringing scorching nights, known as "tropical", with temperatures in many cases close to 30°C. Despite the slight improvement forecast for the coming days, meteorologists have warned that temperatures will remain well above average even in September. Nine cities have been placed under red alert for heat, where health risks linked to extreme sultriness are significant even for people not considered vulnerable. The cities affected are Bari, Cagliari, Campobasso, Catania, Latina, Messina, Palermo, Reggio Calabria and Rome. Heat emergency in the south and on the islands, slight improvement from Saturday Across these urban centres, the thermometer has hovered between 39 and 40 degrees, but the most critical situation has been recorded in Calabria, with peaks of 44.6°C in Torano Scalo in the Cosenza area. The Cosenza area is among the worst hit at the moment, with 42.5°C in Cosenza and 41.7°C in San Cosmo Albanese. Conditions are no better in the other provinces of Calabria, where temperatures have generally been around 40°C and above. The situation is also critical in Sicily and Sardinia, with highs of 43°C and perceived temperatures far higher than those shown on the thermometer. In central and southern Italy and the islands, dust from the Sahara Desert is also on its way, carried by air currents from North Africa. According to the Health Ministry's heatwave bulletin, a slight improvement is expected for the weekend, with six cities on red alert (Bari, Catania, Messina, Palermo, Reggio Calabria and Rome) due to fall to four on Sunday (Catania, Messina, Palermo and Reggio Calabria). Also on Friday, extreme temperatures and hot winds helped trigger a fresh emergency on Mount Morrone in Abruzzo. Here the fire that for 15 days had been the region's main cause for concern, and was thought to be almost extinguished as of Thursday, flared up again, making it necessary to deploy more than one hundred ground personnel, including firefighters and volunteers from civil protection and the army, according to Ansa. Northern Italy hit by heavy downpours The north, on the other hand, was hit by several downpours in the morning, again as a consequence of the extreme heat, with heavy rain and hailstorms in southern Lombardy, particularly in the provinces of Bergamo and Brescia, before moving on towards Veneto and Trentino. By evening, thunderstorms are expected to hit Piedmont, the Aosta Valley and northern Lombardy as well, with rainfall intensifying from early afternoon. WWF sounds the alarm: the hottest summer ever recorded in Western Europe "The data for this summer are unequivocal. According to Copernicus, June and July together have been the hottest ever recorded in Western Europe, a full 2.79°C above the 1991-2020 average and almost 0.9°C higher than the previous record set in 2022. This has affected ecosystems and the lives of millions of people. The melting of Alpine glaciers is transforming high-altitude ecosystems and increasing the vulnerability of mountain areas," WWF said in a statement. In Italy, the organisation recalled: "Over 90,000 hectares of forest have been burnt, a 92% increase compared to the average for this period over the last twenty years (49,000 hectares), with almost a third of the fires in protected areas. Record temperatures, drought, water shortages and wildfires are also putting wildlife under severe stress: this is why WWF has asked the regions to suspend hunting in September". "Seas and oceans have also recorded record temperatures. According to data provided by the Copernicus Marine Service (CMEMS), the European Union's Earth observation programme, June 2026 was the hottest June ever recorded in the Mediterranean. Local anomalies reached extreme peaks of up to 8°C above average. In July, water temperatures in some areas exceeded 30°C." (To be continued)