Italy faces weekend predictions of historic highs with the health ministry issuing a red alert for 16 cities
\nGreece is also roasting
\nROME: Record heat is forecast around the world from the United States, where tens of millions are battling dangerously high temperatures, to Europe and Japan, in the latest example of the threat from global warming.
\nItaly faces weekend predictions of historic highs with the health ministry issuing a red alert for 16 cities including Rome, Bologna and Florence.
\nThe meteo center warned Italians to prepare for \u201cthe most intense heatwave of the summer and also one of the most intense of all time.\u201d
\nThe thermometer is likely to hit 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) in Rome by Monday and even 43C on Tuesday, smashing the record 40.5C set in August 2007.
\nThe islands of Sicily and Sardinia could wilt under temperatures as high as 48C, the European Space Agency warned \u2014 \u201cpotentially the hottest temperatures ever recorded in Europe.\u201d
\nGreece is also roasting.
\n\u201cParts of the country could see highs as much as 44C on Saturday,\u201d according to the national weather service EMY. The central city of Thebes sweated under 44.2C on Friday.
\nThe Acropolis, Athens\u2019s top tourist attraction, closed for a second day straight Saturday during the hottest hours with 41C expected, as did several parks in the capital.
\nRegions of France, Germany, Spain and Poland are also baking in searing temperatures.
\nParts of eastern Japan are also expected to reach 38 to 39C on Sunday and Monday, with the meteorological agency warning temperatures could hit previous records.
\nMeanwhile the northern city of Akita saw more rain in half a day than is typical for the whole month of July, Japan\u2019s national broadcaster NHK reported. The downpours also triggered at least one landslide, forcing 9,000 people to evacuate their homes.
\nTorrential rains described by the meteorological agency as the \u201cheaviest rain ever experienced\u201d have also hit southern Japan in recent weeks, leaving at least 11 people dead.
\nRelentless monsoon rains have reportedly killed at least 90 people in northern India, after burning heat.
\nThe Yamuna river running through the capital New Delhi has reached a record high of 208.66 meters, more than a meter over the flood top set in 1978, threatening low-lying neighborhoods in the megacity of more than 20 million people.
\nMajor flooding and landslides are common during India\u2019s monsoons, but experts say climate change is increasing their frequency and severity
\nAmericans are watching as a powerful heatwave has stretches from California to Texas, with its peak expected this weekend.
\nIn Arizona, one of the hardest-hit states, residents face a daily endurance marathon against the sun.
\nState capital Phoenix was to record its 15th straight day above 109F (43C) on Friday, according to the National Weather Services.
\nAuthorities have been sounding the alarm, advising people to avoid outdoor activities in the daytime and to be wary of dehydration.
\nThe Las Vegas weather service warned that assuming high temperatures naturally come with the area\u2019s desert climate was \u201ca DANGEROUS mindset! This heatwave is NOT typical desert heat.\u201d
\n\u201cNow the most intense period is beginning,\u201d it added, as the weekend arrived with record highs threatening on Sunday.
\nCalifornia\u2019s Death Valley, one of the hottest places on Earth, is also likely to register new peaks Sunday, with the mercury possibly rising to 130F (54C).
\nSouthern California is fighting numerous wildfires, including one in Riverside County that has burned over 3,000 acres (1,214 hectares) and prompted evacuation orders.
\nMorocco may be used to hot weather, but it was slated for above-average temperatures this weekend with highs of 47C in some provinces \u2014 more typical of August than July \u2014 sparking concerns for water shortages, the meteorological service said.
\nWater-scarce Jordan was forced to dump 214 tons of water on a wildfire that broke out in the Ajloun forest in the north amid a heatwave, the army said.
\nIn Iraq, where scorching summers are common, along with power cuts, Wissam Abed told AFP he cools off from Baghdad\u2019s brutal summer by swimming in the Tigris river.
\nBut as Iraqi rivers dry up, so does the age-old pastime.
\nWith temperatures near 50C and wind whipping through the city like a hair dryer, Abed stood in the middle of the river, but the water only comes up to his waist.
\n\u201cI live here… like my grandfather did before me. Year after year, the water situation gets worse,\u201d said the 37-year-old.
\nWhile it can be difficult to attribute a particular weather event to climate change, scientists insist global warming \u2014 linked to dependence on fossil fuels \u2014 is behind the multiplication and intensification of heat waves in the world.
\nThe heatwaves come after the EU\u2019s climate monitoring service said the world saw its hottest June on record last month.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Italy faces weekend predictions of historic highs with the health ministry issuing a red alert for 16 cities Greece is also roasting ROME: Record heat is forecast around the world from the United States, where tens of millions are battling dangerously high temperatures, to Europe and Japan, in the latest example of the threat from […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":343283,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-343280","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n