The Italian government on Thursday issued its highest heat alert level - the red alert - for all the country's 27 major cities monitored by the Italian Health Department, as temperatures of more than 35 degrees Celsius persist.
A red alert is issued by the government in Rome when there is extreme heat combined with high humidity. This means there are acute health risks not only for older people and other risk groups but also for healthy people and those who are physically active.
The alert level now applies from north to south, from Bolzano in South Tyrol to Palermo on the Mediterranean island of Sicily.
In many places, temperatures of more than 35 degrees are expected on Thursday. For cities such as Florence in Tuscany and the capital Rome meteorologists are forecasting peaks of more than 40 degrees.
The persistent heat and drought are also affecting Italy's rivers and lakes. On Italy's longest river, the Po, authorities are measuring significantly lower water levels than usual for this time of year at all stations.
Lake Maggiore in northern Italy, the country's second-largest lake after Lake Garda, is approaching a historic low, according to media reports. In the northern part of the Adriatic, meanwhile, temperatures of more than 30 degrees have been measured in the Mediterranean.
Forecasts say the heatwave will last until mid-August. However, temperatures are expected to drop somewhat in the north on Friday.
According to the Health Ministry calculations, Bolzano will then be removed from the list of cities under red alert, leaving 26 cities. Heat thunderstorms are also possible in South Tyrol.
