Iona Napier
A HEATWAVE in the Iberian Peninsula means Spain is experiencing its hottest May in recorded history.
Records were broken across Spain yesterday when the eastern town of Xativa hit a sweltering 42.9 degrees centigrade, smashing the previous European heat record for this time of year.
Temperatures usually only seen in high summer smashed the previous record of 40.1 degrees set at Cordoba Airport in 2006.
Lanzarote airport also sweltered at 42.2 degrees on Wednesday with Valencia reaching 42.3 degrees.
Three recent deaths in Spain have also been put down to soaring temperatures with a 62-year-old Spaniard and a 47-year-old Romanian in Valencia and a 47-year-old in Badajoz.
All because the jet stream is much lower at present, on with the air con, could be stifling this year maybe a Summer Air Con Allowance makes more sense than WFA?
Its already too late!
I’ve been explaining climate change for donkeys years, and there’s *still* numerous ignoramouses (and wicked people) out there denying whats right infront of our noses. It’ll bring instability to many countries, more wars and extremists groups, and of course a few amoral people will get very rich.
Interestingly, our species is overdue for extinction.
In 2009 the last 7 weeks in Guadix before we left for France the daytime temperature was 45/6C, it’s simply not possible to live an active life at those kind of temps. It’s why I get so hacked off when idiots write correctly that life is cheaper behind the Sierras but totally ignore/forget to warn of the unbearable heat in a 6 month summer.
Also ignored or never mentioned is that as you get older extremes of temperature are much harder to handle and death rates for the elderly are never mentioned – how many older foreigners would like to leave but cannot because they cannot sell their properties.
It’s one thing to experience extreme heat for a few weeks and quite another to have to deal with it, month after month. Why is it that shops only open around 10AM when it would make sense to open as early as possible so that shopping could be done before the heat kicks in – simple with appalling or no insulation in Spanish housing it is impossible to get to sleep until the early hours of the morning, probably the main reason for head on crashes with a driver falling asleep at the wheel.
Of course they don’t mention it, doesn’t fit in with the myth they want to portray. Like the other one that kids can play outside all the time. Not in August heat. Just odd trips to the beach. I really don’t know how some manage without a swimming pool.