A major heat wave is affecting countries in southern Europe, including Spain, France, Italy, and Greece, pushing temperatures above 40°C (104°F). Across the region, local authorities have issued fresh warnings against the severe risk to health and the threat of wildfires.

Turkish authorities are on alert as in the last 24 hours alone, 77 fires have broken out across the country, 53 of which were forest fires. Of these, 9 are extensive and raging out of control. Authorities in western Turkey have evacuated 50,000 people from the threatened areas, mainly from around the Izmir region.

Severe temperatures have been recorded in France, Italy, Greece, Spain and Portugal before the weekend, with locals and tourists alike taking shelter from the sweltering conditions.

Greece is once again at high wildfire alert, with the extreme conditions expected to increase in intensity in the next few days and continue at least until the weekend.

Experts link the rising frequency and intensity of these heat waves to climate change, warning that such extreme weather events are becoming increasingly common across Europe’s southern countries.