Depicted as a grumpy and ragged old man, Charon He was, in Greek mythology, the boatman who took the dead to hell. Charon -meaning “intense shine“- is what the meteorologists have called the heat wave that since Monday falls on Italy and a large part of southern Europe. In Rome this Monday they will reach 40 degrees and tomorrow they will be 42, an absolute record for the eternal city (“city infernal”, for the British newspaper ‘The Times’).
“In the hottest hours, large crowds in outdoor places are discouraged,” requested the Minister of Health, Horace Schillaci, in statements to the newspaper ‘Il Messaggero’, and added: “If necessary, we will consider some measures. Going to the Colosseum when it is 43 degrees is not recommended.” The closure of the most emblematic monument in Italy has not yet been contemplated. In Greece, on the other hand, the authorities did decree last weekend to close the doors of the Acropolis between 1:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. local time.
But while there they begin to breathe little by little, this week ground zero of the ‘infernal’ heat is in Italy, with 60% of the country with temperatures over 40 degrees and with maximums, in some points, up to 47. In Florence, Sardinia and the Lazio Region, there is a maximum alert for fires and the authorities have activated the red code of the heat plan. In Milan, the forecast 38 degrees together with the high humidity will lead to ‘tropical’ nights, well above 20 degrees. The highest peaks will be reached in Sardinia, with up to 47 degrees in inland areas, especially in the Cagliari area, and in Sicily, with peaks between 45 and 46 degrees.
With this scenario, the health risk skyrockets. in Cagliari a 48-year-old tourist who was riding a bicycle died. In Florence, a 61-year-old cleaner who worked in a warehouse died. A 44-year-old man who was painting traffic signs in Lodi (Milan), also lost his life last Thursday due to the heat. “He is another victim that could have been avoided. Many companies do not take into account at all the aspect of job security in relation to the climate,” denounced the union leader Salvatore Cutaia.
Until a few days ago, Federica, manager of the Villa Gaia hotel in Taormina (Sicily), watched on television how the heat wave wreaked havoc in Spain. She now she touches them. “Here we were very well. For a couple of days, hell has come to us,” she declared. “Many greet you in the street saying buonforno [buen horno] en lugar de hello,” he informs Sara Polo, on vacation precisely in Sicily. “Tourists have abandoned high-end looks in Taormina and have given themselves over to cool cotton. It’s not even 11 in the morning and the heat is already suffocating, there isn’t a breeze and the humidity generates a certain feeling of anguish In some hotels they have implemented a payment system for air conditioning. ten euros a day” he explains. The situation does not improve in the interior of the island. When visiting Polizzi Generosa, at 900 meters above sea level, you usually need a jacket at sunset. This is not the case this year.