Category Archives: Extreme weather

‘Facekinis’ become popular in China as temperatures soar

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People buying full-face masks alongside hats, fans – and hats with inbuilt fans – as temperatures rise above 35C

In scorching Beijing, “facekinis” are the hottest new fashion as surging temperatures shatter records.

With the air temperature rising above 35C (95F) and the ground surface temperature soaring as high as 80C in some parts of the country, residents and visitors have taken to carrying portable fans and covering themselves up to avoid getting burnt. Some hats even have fans built in.

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Man dies in Death Valley as California national park swelters in extreme heat

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High temperature ‘may have been a factor’ in death of 71-year-old Steve Curry in Golden Canyon area, park officials say

A 71-year-old man collapsed and died in Death Valley on Tuesday as temperatures in the valley – the point of lowest elevation in North America as well as one of the hottest places in the world – reached at least 121F (49.4C).

“Heat may have been a factor in his death,” Death Valley national park officials said in a press release.

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Thursday briefing: What’s behind Europe’s extreme heat – and the risks ahead

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In today’s newsletter: How countries have responded to record-breaking temperatures – and what it will take to change minds and policy

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Good morning.

When the temperature in Sicily is approaching 50C, you know something is wrong.

New Zealand | Two people died and six people were injured after a shooting at a building site in Auckland city centre, hours before the Women’s World Cup is due to start. The gunman was also dead. New Zealand’s PM, Chris Hipkins, said the World Cup would proceed as planned.

Politics | Almost 200,000 families living under Labour-run councils are affected by the two-child benefit cap, a Guardian analysis has revealed. Keir Starmer’s decision not to scrap the policy if Labour wins power has led to attacks from anti-poverty campaigners and disquiet from senior figures in the party.

Health | MPs have urged the government to introduce restrictions on the packaging and marketing of disposable vapes to tackle the “alarming trend” of children using these addictive products. The health and social care committee said there should be restrictions on how e-cigarettes are sold, in line with those applied to tobacco products.

Slavery | Caribbean countries are considering approaching the UN’s international court of justice for a legal opinion on demanding compensation from 10 European countries over slavery, as the fight for reparative justice is stepped up. Ralph Gonsalves, the current leader of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, said he is also looking for an apology from the British government and expressed disappointment in Rishi Sunak’s lack of engagement in the matter.

Strikes | A strike by train staff in the RMT union will severely affect rail services across Britain in the next week. About 20,000 RMT members at 14 train operators will strike for 24 hours on Thursday and again on Saturday, coinciding with the end of a week-long overtime ban by train drivers in the Aslef union. The 10 days of transport disruption will coincide with the peak summer holiday getaway weekend.

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Extreme weather: heat strains healthcare systems, says WHO; Nasa to meet climate experts – as it happened

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Here are some more images from the wires of the wildfires that swept through forestland and towns north-west of Athens for a second day. The fires forced the evacuation of more than 1,000 children close to a Greek seaside resort.

Tourists flocked to China’s scenic Flaming Mountains to experience searing high temperatures amid punishing heatwaves that have scorched much of the northern hemisphere.

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Strike threats in Italy and stoppages in Greece as workers struggle with heat

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Parts of Sicily reach almost 47C and Spanish coastal water temperatures hit new high for mid-July

Temperatures reached almost 47C in southern Italy on Wednesday and factory workers threatened to strike over the extreme heat, while wildfires continued to rage in Greece and temperatures in coastal waters around Spain broke records.

In Sicily, where the European record of 48.8C was registered in August 2021, the mercury climbed to almost 47C in the area between Mazara del Vallo, in the province of Trapani, and Sciacca, in Agrigento province, according to data from ilMeteo.it. Temperatures in Sardinia reached 46C while Rome – where there were energy blackouts on Tuesday due to pressure on the grid believed to be from air conditioners – peaked at 38C.

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Phoenix’s unhoused residents suffer through record heat even at night

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Only one cooling center remains open all night, when the concrete radiates heat stored during hellish daytime hours

Even after the sun sinks below the horizon in Phoenix, Arizona, the concrete cityscape continues to cook. In the midst of a record-breaking heatwave that’s kept daily highs above 110F (43.3C) for more than 18 consecutive days, the evening hours have offered little reprieve. For more than a week low temperatures breached 90F (32.2C), breaking a grim record recently set in 2020.

While the city is considered a leader in mitigating the dangers of extreme heat and has worked to secure widespread access to cooling centers and hydration stations during the scorching summer days, most facilities here close before nightfall. There’s only a single center that operates around the clock in a city of more than 1.6 million people, even as dangerous conditions grow more deadly – especially for those who can’t access overnight relief.

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Olive oil industry in crisis as Europe’s heatwave threatens another harvest

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World’s biggest olive producer, Spain, on course for second bad harvest in a row, raising fears of gaps on shelves and even higher prices

The olive oil industry is “in crisis”, with the heatwave in southern Europe threatening to inflict the second bad harvest in a row and gaps on shelves this autumn.

After a spring heatwave affected flowering in Spain, which produces about half the global olive crop, the harvest was forecast to be only 28% up on last year, which was the worst in almost a decade.

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Italian media more focused on foreign coverage of heatwave than its effects

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Reporting of climate crisis has been lousy for years, experts say, in a country where rightwing press has been dominant

Italy is sweltering in abnormally high temperatures, but its media appear to be more interested in how the extreme heat is being reported in the foreign press than delving deeply into the effects in a country deemed to be among the most vulnerable in Europe to the climate crisis.

Over the weekend, several outlets picked up on reports on Italy’s heatwave in leading foreign news websites – including the Guardian, the Times and the BBC. They were particularly fascinated by a headline in the Times calling Rome – where temperatures are forecast to reach highs of 43C on Tuesday – the “Infernal City”, a play on the nickname “Eternal City”. So much so that it was still a talking point come Monday.

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Extreme heatwave live: Texas city confirms first heat death; northern hemisphere boils in severe weather – as it happened

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Man in Houston died in house without air conditioning; mercury in parts of Italy is close to hitting 45C as wildfires ravage Greece and Spain

South Korean president blames botched responses for rising death toll

South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol has blamed authorities’ failure to follow disaster response rules as the death toll from days of torrential rain grew to 39, including a dozen people found dead in a submerged underpass.

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South Korea floods: president urges climate crisis action as death toll hits 40

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President Yoon Suk Yeol calls for overhaul of national preparedness as extreme weather becomes ‘commonplace’

Rescuers in South Korea have recovered a total of 13 bodies from a flooded road tunnel in a central city, as the death toll from flash floods and landslides triggered by days of heavy rain rose to at least 40 on Monday.

The devastation prompted the country’s president, Yoon Suk Yeol, to warn that the climate crisis had made extreme weather a fact of life.

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At least three killed and four missing after flash floods in Pennsylvania

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Torrential rainstorm swept through township in south-eastern Pennsylvania, killing several and leaving behind a slew of damage

At least three people have been killed by a sudden flash flood in Pennsylvania while four others remain missing.

On Saturday evening, flash floods as a result of a torrential rainstorm swept through Upper Makefield township in south-eastern Pennsylvania, killing several and leaving behind a slew of damage including submerged buildings.

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Millions in US under warnings as record heat expected to continue next week

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South-west and parts of the west hardest hit amid warnings to ‘take heat seriously’ as Phoenix temperature to rise to 118F Sunday

More than 100 million people, around a third of Americans, were under extreme heat advisories this weekend and that record-breaking heat was expected to continue into the new week.

There were advisories from coast to coast, with the south-west and parts of the west hard hit and officials warning that conditions could get worse in Arizona, California and Nevada.

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Southern Europe braces for second heat storm in a week

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New system pushing into region from north Africa could lead to temperatures above record 48.8C

Southern Europe is bracing for a second heat storm in a week, with Italy, Greece and Spain, along with Morocco and other Mediterranean countries, being told temperature records could be broken on Tuesday.

A new anticyclone that pushed into the region from north Africa on Sunday could lift temperatures above the record 48.8C (120F) seen in Sicily in August 2021, and follows last week’s Cerberus heatwave.

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US south-west bakes under potentially deadly record high temperatures

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Phoenix, Arizona, logged its 16th day above 110F, and California’s Death Valley reached 122F as cities offered cooling centers

A dangerous heatwave threatened a wide swath of the south-west with potentially deadly temperatures in the triple digits on Saturday as some cooling centers extended their hours and emergency rooms prepared to treat more people with heat-related illnesses.

“Near record temperatures are expected this weekend!” the National Weather Service in Phoenix warned in a tweet, advising people to follow its safety tips such as drinking plenty of water and checking on relatives and neighbors.

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Firefighters battle California wildfires amid blistering heatwave

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Three brush fires burning in rural areas across Riverside county, where 1,000 homes are under evacuation orders

Firefighters in southern California were battling three separate brush fires that started on Friday afternoon amid a blistering heatwave.

The fires were all within 40 miles (65km) of each other in mostly rural areas across Riverside county, south-east of Los Angeles.

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‘I’ve never seen heat this bad. It’s not normal’: Italy struggles as temperature tops 40C

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Anticyclone Caronte could send thermometer to 48C/118F as Mediterranean heatwave intensifies

• Read more: Acropolis closes to protect tourists

A fierce anticyclone named after Cerberus, a three-headed monster-dog that features in Dante’s Inferno, had not even ended before Italians were warned that a more intense one called Caronte, or Charon, who in Greek mythology was the ferryman of the dead, was on its way.

Italy sweltered in temperatures reaching highs of 38C over the weekend, while Caronte will grip the country from Monday, sending the mercury beyond 40C in central and southern regions, with the islands of Sicily and Sardinia possibly hitting a peak of 48C.

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South Korea floods leave dozens dead as rescuers scramble to find tunnel victims

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Bodies recovered from underpass as downpours trigger landslides and force evacuation of thousands

Rescuers in South Korea are battling to reach people trapped in a flooded tunnel, while at least 37 people have died after heavy rains caused flooding and landslides.

South Korea is at the peak of its summer monsoon season and there has been heavy rainfall for the last four days, causing a major dam to overflow.

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European heatwave: red alerts issued for 16 cities in Italy

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Rome, Florence and Bologna among areas affected as forecasters say Sicily and Sardinia could face record 49C temperatures

Sixteen cities across Italy have been issued with red alerts as southern Europe continues to experience fierce heat and faces the possibility of record-breaking temperatures.

Rome, Florence and Bologna are among the areas affected by the heatwave, with forecasters suggesting that Sicily and Sardinia could see temperatures climb as high as 49C (120F), which would be the hottest ever recorded in Europe.

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Severe US weather: California heat puts firefighters on high alert for wildfires; Canada wildfires cause air quality alerts in US midwest – as it happened

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Extreme dry conditions raising fire risk; air quality alert for Minnesota took effect at 8am on Friday

Vermont governor Phil Scott said his formal request to President Joe Biden for a major disaster declaration has been approved.

The major disaster declaration unlocks federal disaster funds to assist individuals and communities recover from the devastating floods earlier this week.

The disaster declaration provides federal support for recovery. It’s separate from, and in addition to, the federal emergency declaration the president already signed when he was overseas to help with the initial emergency phase.

It’s incredibly important to get flooded homes, businesses and public buildings as dry as possible to prevent other outcomes like mould. We’re working on resources to help with that.

I’m very grateful for the speed of Fema in the White House. It will open up significant federal resources for communities, individuals, businesses [...] In anticipation of these funds, we are working to develop a concrete list of resources to help impacted Vermonters and making sure it’s as easy as possible for Vermonters to access those.

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Floods, tornadoes, heat: more extreme weather predicted across US

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Over a third of Americans under extreme heat warnings as Vermont, still recovering from historic flooding, prepares for more storms

The US is bracing for more extreme weather from coast to coast, with a heatwave hitting California, tornados in the midwest and the east expecting more rain as it continues to reel from historic flooding.

Residents of Vermont, still suffering from an onslaught of dangerous weather in recent days, are preparing for another round of severe storms in the area beginning as early as Thursday night.

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