This story was originally published by Grist. Sign up for Grist’s weekly newsletter here. This story is part of Record High, a Grist series examining extreme heat and its impact on how—and where—we live.
Security guards and tourism guides at the Parthenon in Athens made headlines this summer when they went on strike during the scorching afternoons of a July heat wave that reached up to 113 degrees Fahrenheit in Greece.
“The extreme weather conditions continue to plague the country, despite this the Ministry of Culture did not take drastic measures—as it should have—to protect workers and visitors,” said the Panhellenic Union of Employees for the Guarding of Antiquities in a press release. The union stated that multiple people were seen fainting and suffering from heatstroke at the Acropolis, the complex of monuments that includes the Parthenon, prompting them to strike.
