Rome - An unusually early and intense heatwave has hit large parts of Italy. As the Ministry of Health reports in its latest heat bulletin, temperatures and humidity are rising rapidly. A red alert has been issued for four cities for tomorrow, Thursday, May 28: Bologna, Florence, Rome and Turin. This highest alert level signals emergency conditions that could pose a health risk not only for vulnerable groups such as senior citizens and children, but also for healthy people.
Temperatures are expected to reach up to 35 degrees in Florence, 33 degrees in Bologna and 32 degrees in Rome and Turin.
Tropical nights and risk of thunderstorms
The heatwave will reach a temporary peak today, Wednesday. The orange alert level applies to numerous cities, including Bolzano, Brescia, Frosinone, Perugia, Rieti, Trieste, Venice, Milan, Viterbo and Verona. The bulletin reports a total of 15 cities with a level two warning for today. To make matters worse, the first „tropical nights“ of the season are expected in the Po Valley and central Italy - nights in which temperatures do not fall below 20 degrees.
While the north and center of Italy are sweating under the influence of a strong area of high pressure, which has already caused record temperatures of over 33 degrees in major European cities such as London and Paris, the south of the country has been somewhat spared the extreme peaks.
Contrasting weather conditions
Alongside the high temperatures, the civil defense is warning of local weather changes. A yellow alert has been issued for today in five regions due to possible thunderstorms. The regions affected are Basilicata, Emilia-Romagna, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Lombardy and Veneto.
The Ministry of Health will continue to monitor the situation on a daily basis. Only six of the 27 cities being monitored - Ancona, Bari, Cagliari, Campobasso, Civitavecchia and Palermo - currently still retain the green and therefore harmless level. The publication of the daily heat bulletins is planned until September 20.
