SPAIN is bracing for a scorching week of temperatures more typical of August as a massive anticyclone brings sweltering heat across much of the country.
The weather will see thermometers soar to near 40C in some inland areas, with popular expat regions including Andalucia and parts of Madrid bearing the brunt of the heat.
State weather agency Aemet warns that temperatures could be between 6-10 degrees above normal for this time of year in inland areas, with coastal regions also seeing rises of up to 6C.
The Guadalquivir, Tagus and Guadiana valleys are expected to endure several consecutive days above 38C, while the provinces of Sevilla, Cordoba and Jaen could occasionally breach the 40C mark between Wednesday and Friday.
Madrid and Zaragoza are forecast to hit between 36-37C – completely unusual figures for the third week of September – while northern cities like A Coruña, Oviedo, Santander and Bilbao will enjoy more comfortable temperatures around 25C.
The heat will begin building on Monday, with Badajoz in Extremadura already set to reach 38C. Low-lying areas of southwest Spain and parts of the Canary Islands will exceed 34C, with the Guadalquivir hitting 36C.
However, there will be some respite along parts of the coast, with temperatures dropping in Huelva, the Alboran Sea area, the Strait of Gibraltar, Galicia, the upper Ebro and the Cantabrian coast.
Tuesday will see the heat intensify in the northwest, before Wednesday brings the most punishing conditions to the Ebro Valley, southern Canary Islands, inland southeast, southern Galicia and interior Castile and Leon.
Night-time will offer little relief, with minimum temperatures refusing to drop below 20C across the Mediterranean and parts of southwest Spain.
The province of Jaen faces the most uncomfortable nights, with minimums potentially staying above 25C – creating what meteorologists call ‘torrid nights’.
The only exception to the nationwide heatwave will be in northern Spain, where an Atlantic weather front will bring cloudy skies and light rain to Galicia, the Cantabrian coast and the Pyrenees.
Heavy showers and thunderstorms are possible in the eastern Pyrenees and Iberian mountain system.
The extreme weather is expected to persist throughout the week, with Aemet predicting the following week (September 22-28) will also be ‘warm for the time of year, with little rainfall across most of the Peninsula.’
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