According to the weather forecast until Saturday temperatures will gradually rise to levels typical of summer, which are exceptionally high for this time of year. The situation is due to the arrival of a very warm and dry air mass from Africa.
Civil Protection is asking people to avoid reckless behaviour in the mountains, such as throwing cigarette butts, leaving abandoned rubbish or using machinery, as negligence causes the greatest number of fires.
Civil Protection is also asking people to limit exposure to the sun; to stay in well-ventilated places; to eat light, regular meals, rich in water and mineral salts, such as fruit and vegetables; to drink water or liquids frequently; to dress in light-coloured clothes that cover as much skin as possible, as well as the head.
It also advises avoiding prolonged physical exercise in the middle of the day, taking care of the elderly and the sick, and those who live alone or in isolation.
According to the Balearic met. office, temperatures are going to between 15ºC and 16ºC higher than usual for this time of year by the weekend.
Spain is bracing for a week of temperatures as high as 40C that are forecast to shatter records for April, as officials weighed opening public swimming pools early and adapting school schedules and meteorologists warned of the risk of wildfires.
Coinciding with a long-running drought, the cause for the predicted hike in temperatures is "the progressive entry of a very warm and dry air mass from Africa coupled with atmospheric stability (meaning unchangeable weather) and strong sunshine", Spain's weather agency AEMET said today.
These unseasonable temperatures would be "typical of summer" and "exceptionally high for these dates", AEMET added, with the mercury expected to creep up to 38-40 degrees Celsius (100-104 Fahrenheit) in the southern Guadalquivir Valley that includes the city of Cordoba.
That would be the highest figure for April since official recordkeeping of Spanish meteorological data began in 1961. The previous monthly high of 37.4C was recorded in the eastern region of Murcia on April 9, 2011.
AEMET spokesman Ruben del Campo told reporters that because of the abnormal heat, large swathes of the country would be at high or extreme risk of wildfires. He previously said that rising temperatures in Spain were "clearly attributable to climate change, which has led to higher temperatures on a global scale".
The government of the central Madrid region on Monday announced a special action plan, including measures to allow schools to adapt their timetables around peak temperatures and ensuring proper air conditioning at health centres.
Under the plan, Madrid's ubiquitous outdoor swimming pools, where locals flock as the temperatures climb each year, will open a month earlier than usual, in mid-May. The capital's subway system is also set to crank up the A/C and increase train frequency to avoid overcrowding.
Meanwhile, the southwestern city of Sevilla has boosted its emergency services budget and increased healthcare worker numbers as it celebrates its popular "Feria de Abril" spring fair that last year attracted an estimated 500,000 revellers.
In its annual State of the Climate report, the EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service said southern Europe experienced the highest number of days with "very strong heat stress" on record in 2022.
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Lisa JuliaI can only agree. I've just finished clearing and burning my modest hectare, 240 olive trees, 90% broken. Meanwhile the adjoining large finca owned by a prominent Palma family is a disaster area of broken branches, downed fences, weeds, feral goats, sheep and ticks and a major fire risk this summer!
This is actually a serious situation. I was walking in the mountains yesterday and hadn’t realised the level of storm damage up there. The whole area is crowded with fallen and broken trees. It looks like a hurricane hit. Some tracks are still blocked. We had to turn back twice. The mountain services are working very hard to clear the devastation. They’re doing an amazing job. But it’s going to take months and the debris is a major fire risk. Let’s hope people really do take the warnings seriously and act accordingly. It’s quite scary seeing what nature has done. I now understand why Government requested EU assistance. They need it.