The Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued several travel warnings for Portugal and Spain, where forecasters say the all-time temperature record could be broken in the coming days.
Rising temperatures in Spain and Portugal are due to a surge of hot air sweeping in from Africa, BBC informs.
BBC Weather says the current forecast for southwestern Spain and southern and southeastern Portugal (Lisbon, Setubal, Badajoz) is 47C (116.6F) on both Friday and Saturday.
Portugal’s national record is 47.4C (117.3F), set in 2003. Spain’s peak of 47.3C (117.1F) was only set in July last year.
Croatia and Greece are also under the heat alert and temperatures reaching 40C are expected in southwestern France as well. Code red alerts for heat have also been issued for several regions in northern and central Italy, targeting such cities as Florence, Venice and Rome.
The current European record is 48C (118.4F) set in Athens in July 1977.
Neck rot seizes hundreds of ha of grapevines in SE Romania following heavy rains
As western Europe is fighting the heatwave, the torrential rains have wreaked havoc in Romania. Neck rot, an infectious diseases of the plants which is caused by heavy rains, has attacked hundreds of hectares of grapevines in southeastern Romania, in Vrancea, Galati and Buzau counties. Farmers say that treatment has no effect.
The neck rot is a disease attacking the grapes and the pea vines. The fungus is caused by excessive humidity, while cures are expensive and are not preventing entirely the disease.
Crops will be partially compromised.