In Italy, temperatures could reach 40 degrees Celsius in coming days, according to the Meteo Giuliacci weather forecast center. Temperatures that high can be dangerous to vulnerable people, including the elderly and small children.
Giancarlo Penza of the Sant'Egidio community is in charge of a program that assists thousands of octogenarians across Italy, particularly in Rome.
“We are already making hundreds of phone calls every day, as we always do as soon as we receive heat wave alerts from the local authorities,” Penza said. “We don’t wait for the old people to ask for help. We call them over and over to make sure they are fine, they have enough food or medicines when it is too hot to go out.”
Britain also will get a bout of unseasonably high temperatures. Temperatures in the southeast likely will peak at 33 degrees Celsius on Friday, according to the UK’s Met Office.
“This is the first spell of hot weather this year, and it is still unusual for temperature to exceed these values in June," said Dan Rudman, deputy chief meteorologist at the Met Office. "Many areas will also see some warm nights, with temperatures expected to be in the mid to high teens overnight.”
But relief may be swift. Starting Saturday, a cold front moves in from the north that may bring rain and cooler temperatures.
By Will Mathis, Laura Millan Lombrana and Alan Katz (Bloomberg)
