37 locations from north to south above 40 degrees

Portugal has not technically been hit by a heat wave. But the past three days have seen oven-worthy temperatures across the country. Official data from the Portuguese Institute of the Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA) shows that 37 weather stations recorded maximum temperatures above 40 degrees on Tuesday. The hottest place was Alvega (Abrantes), with 45.5°, followed by Santarém, with 43.6°. The Pinhão and Mértola stations were tied for 43rd place. Another 62 stations ranked between 35th and 40th.

This situation led to 13 districts yesterday being issued orange warnings for heat, five more on yellow, and more than 40 municipalities being issued maximum forest fire alert. Yesterday, major fires of concern occurred in Almaseda, Castelo Branco (320 active), Ourem (261) and Odemira (175).

Nights also did not deviate from the “tropical” trend: in dozens of places the temperature was above 25 degrees even in the early morning hours. The coastline was an exception: at Cape Raso (Cascais) the maximum temperature was 21.9 degrees, and at Cape Carvoeiro (Peniche) the thermometers were at 22.1 degrees.

High temperatures mostly affect the elderly, children and chronically ill. Experts advise avoiding sun exposure during the hottest hours, keeping doors, windows and shutters closed, drinking fluids and avoiding alcoholic beverages.

According to IPMA, temperatures will start to fall from today – Lisbon, for example, is expected to drop from 38°C yesterday to 28°C – but always at levels considered normal for summer, especially in coastal regions. Inland, temperatures are expected to remain above 35 degrees. This downward trend is expected to continue until Saturday.

July 21 was the hottest day in the world since records began in 1940, with the average global surface temperature at 17.09 degrees Celsius. The data was released by Europe’s Copernicus programme and shows that the record is slightly higher (0.01°C) than the previous maximum, set on July 6, 2023.

The new daily record, which comes as heat waves are battering parts of the United States and Europe, could be broken again in the coming days before temperatures drop, although there could be fluctuations in the coming weeks, Copernicus said.

“What is really surprising is the magnitude of the difference between the temperatures of the last 13 months and previous temperature records,” said Carlo Buontempo, director of the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S). “We are now in unknown territory,” he warned.

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DEATHS WITHOUT REGISTERED INCREASE

There were 318 deaths recorded on Tuesday and 313 on Monday, both within the seasonal average, according to the Directorate General of Health. The day with the most deaths in Portugal this year was January 2, with 510 fatalities, many from respiratory infections that clogged hospital emergency rooms.

P. NEW MINIMUM 27.7°

The heat wave was not limited to the daytime. In Proença-a-Nova, the minimum temperature recorded over the last two days was 27.7°. In Portalegre, the minimum did not fall from 27.6°. Only along the coast did the record fall to 20°.