Italy on Red Alert as Heat Swelters EU

Italy placed all its major cities on the highest health alert on Thursday as an extreme heatwave continued to grip large parts of Europe.

The health alert stretches from Palermo in Sicily to Bolzano in the far north, signalling a potential public health emergency for the entire population.

In response, local authorities are launching creative relief measures; Genoa is offering free museum and library access to seniors during peak heat hours, while Rome extended its programme of free screenings in air-conditioned cinemas.

Meanwhile, severe drought conditions forced Italy’s Piedmont region to declare a state of emergency over acute wildfire risks and historic low river levels.

As the extreme heat shifts eastward, plummeting water levels along major European rivers are severely disrupting energy production and transport networks.

Record lows on the Danube forced Hungary to scale down operations at its sole nuclear power plant, prompting officials to shut off decorative lighting at state landmarks like the Hungarian Parliament to conserve electricity.

Neighbouring Romania prepared to sink rock-filled barges into the Danube to redirect water toward its own nuclear reactor, while German shippers along the Rhine must navigate partially loaded vessels due to shallow waters.

In southern Bosnia, tourists are escaping 40 °C temperatures by seeking refuge inside the UNESCO-listed Vjetrenica cave, where internal temperatures remain a steady 11 °C year-round.