According to the European Drought Observatory (EDO), Europe is currently experiencing the worst drought in at least half a millennium.
Reuters writes about it.
Data from scientists indicate that two-thirds of Europe is already in a state of drought due to excessively high temperatures and lack of precipitation. 47% of the continentʼs territory is in a state of danger with a clear deficit of moisture in the soil, and 17% is in a state of danger due to damage to vegetation.
Scientists note that this is only the first assessment, but in August they already recorded the facts of increased drought.
The EDO said that rains in mid-August may have improved the situation, but in some regions they were accompanied by thunderstorms that caused additional damage.
- In mid-July, record heat was observed in Spain, Portugal, Greece and France. More than a thousand people died because of it. Some regions of these countries were affected by forest fires. Since mid-July, the center of England suffered from heat and fires. At that time, the region recorded a temperature maximum of +40 °C. In general, a record amount of forest — 660,000 hectares — was burned on the continent due to abnormal heat.
- In Denmark in July, the heat broke the 1941 indicator, and in France, 60 temperature records were recorded on July 19 alone.
- Swiss authorities had to involve army aviation to deliver water to alpine meadows, where animals suffer from thirst due to high temperatures.
- On August 12, a drought was declared in England.
- Abnormal heat is observed in Europe to this day. In Spain, the drought caused the local "Stonehenge" to emerge from the water for the first time in many years, and in Serbia, the Danube became shallow, due to which more than 20 German ships sunk during the Second World War were seen near the city of Prahovo.