Extreme heat across the Mediterranean is expected to build into the weekend, testing records in fire-ravaged Greece after easing slightly on Thursday.
Temperatures on the Italian island of Sardinia climbed close to a record of 47.7C (118F) on Wednesday, but Greece and the Balkans are becoming the new focus of the Saharan anticyclone. Forecast highs will reach 46C on Sunday, according to the Hellenic National Meteorological Service. The country’s all-time high of 48C was set in Athens in 1977, standing as a European record until it was eclipsed by Sicily’s 48.8C two years ago.
Most of the wildfires burning around Athens have been brought under control, though authorities are evacuating an area close to Mandras, northwest of the capital. The blaze on the Greek island of Rhodes is still burning, but is no longer threatening homes.
