Spain to get respite from ongoing hot spell – but only until Sunday

The good news is that Wednesday is the last day of the intense heat spell that’s been affecting nearly the entire Iberian peninsula since Friday of last week.

The bad news is that it will be “yet another day of putting up with the sweltering heat, both in the daytime and in the nighttime,” according to Delia Gutiérrez, spokesperson for the AEMET state weather agency.

Gutiérrez said that highs on Wednesday will be 5°C above average for this time of the year, except in the south, along Galicia’s coastline and in the Canary Islands.

Today is “yet another day of putting up with the sweltering heat, both in the daytime and night-time”

The highest temperatures are being recorded in northeastern Spain, along the Ebro River, as was the case during the June heatwave. The meteorology agency has issued weather alerts for 36 Spanish provinces. The areas on orange alert, the second highest, include Córdoba, Jaén, Aragón, Toledo, Ávila, Lleida, Navarre, Cáceres and La Rioja. One step down, on yellow, are Almería, Granada, Seville, Cantabria, the rest of Castilla-La Mancha, the rest of Castilla y León apart from León, the other three Catalan provinces, Madrid, Valencia, Badajoz, the Balearics and the Basque Country. There will be no more rain or storm warnings, however, after the wet weather seen in parts on Monday and Tuesday.

The weather is expected to turn on Thursday, when the readings on thermometers could drop 5 to 6°C, said Gutiérrez. The respite will last until Sunday, when temperatures will climb again.

English version by Susana Urra.