Abnormal heat in Europe: fires, evacuation, power system at the limit

In Europe reigns anomalous heat. People are being evacuated from their homes due to large-scale forest fires. The headlines of the Western media are full of this.

But the Thermal Apocalypse is just the tip of the iceberg. Why abnormal heat in Europe is a threat not only to the health of citizens, but also to the economy.

Abnormal heat in Western Europe breaks records: in most of the territory of Spain and Portugal, the temperature exceeded 40 degrees Celsius. A similar situation is observed in the southern regions of France.

Abnormal heat in Europe

The city of Ourense in northwestern Spain set a temperature record of 43,2°C, while the city of Luza in central Portugal reached 46,3°C. In the capital, Lisbon, this week a temperature record of 41,4°C was set.

to Reuters пишетthat the lands in France, Spain and Portugal were enveloped in forest fires. Hundreds of people have been evacuated from their homes and officials in Europe have issued health warnings for the heatwave in the coming days.

The peak of the heat now fell on the Iberian Peninsula, then spread to the north and east of Europe. Now it's the UK.

According to Reuters, on Monday, July 18, the temperature in some regions of the kingdom exceeded 38-39 C. These values ​​are record. The night from July 18 to 19 in Britain was the hottest on record - the temperature did not fall below 25C.

Tuesday brought even more intense heat to the kingdom. The thermometers exceeded 41C, and the temperature of the pavement in places reaches 60C and higher, negatively affecting the capacity of asphalt roads.

The British media are discussing with might and main that this week will be "hotter" on the island than in the Maldives or Barbados.

But the suffering of weather-sensitive residents of Britain and other Western European countries is far from the most deplorable consequences of the current heat.

Abnormal heat in Europe is a threat not only to the health of citizens, but also to the economy.

According to Bloomberg, referring to Rystad Energy analysts, due to the abnormal heat, the EU countries will not be able to pump natural gas reserves necessary for the normal heating season.

The reason for this is that a sharp increase in temperature, as well as its sharp decrease, entails an increase in electricity consumption - the population turns on air conditioners, uses more water, which is pumped by electric pumps, and so on. It, in turn, is produced by burning energy resources, the most "environmentally friendly" of which is natural gas.

Given the decline in gas flow through Nord Stream 1, the situation with fuel in Europe in the autumn-winter period promises to be difficult.

Speaking about the heat, Bloomberg writes that the weather works for Vladimir Putin. Because the heat also leads to the shallowing of rivers, which affects the production of electricity at hydroelectric power stations.

For example, French nuclear power plants use rivers for cooling. If the generation of electricity through hydroelectric power plants, thermal power plants and nuclear power plants is stopped, only wind and solar energy will help Europe, which also depend on the vagaries of the weather.

“Therefore, when evaluating what will happen next in the energy conflict between Europe and Russia, keep an eye on the sky. And pray for rain, - the agency concludes its publication with these words.