Swathes of Switzerland are still under red level danger warnings as the period extreme heat continued to bake the country.
National forecaster Météo Suisse on Tuesday raised warning levels in eastern Switzerland, meaning a huge swathe of the country was on the red-level alert on Tuesday.
The red warning stands for “high danger” and is the second highest alert level.
As the map below shows, large sections of Switzerland from west to east were still covered by red warnings on Wednesday morning, particularly in the north of the country including Zurich, but also with southern areas like Geneva, Lausanne and Lugano on red alert too.
Much of the rest of the country was on orange alert.
Large swathes of Switzerland are under a severe weather warning. Photo: MeteoSwiss.A large and persistent high-pressure system over Central and Southern Europe is causing the blisteringly hot weather with little respite in sight for the Alpine region before at least the end of the month, according to Météo Suisse.
The forecaster was predicting highs of between 33C and 36C on Tuesday with even places at 1,000 metres above sea level potentially reaching 30C.
There was a level-four red weather warning in place in Basel – currently the hottest place in Switzerland – until Saturday evening with temperatures of over 35C expected every day.
Residents are unlikely to get any respite overnight either as lows of at least 20C are expected in the German-speaking city all week.
Wednesday will see temperatures in Switzerland hit 35C. Image Météo France.
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Scientists have shown that recurring heatwaves are a clear marker of global warming, primarily caused by burning coal, oil and gas — and warn they are set to become more frequent, longer and more intense.
More red weather warnings
According to Meteo News, it could still get even hotter. The experts said that next weekend is expected to bring in a warm front from France, that could send temperatures as high as 37C on Saturday and 38C on Sunday in Basel.
It could be almost as hot in Zurich (36C and 37C) and marginally cooler in St Gallen (33C and 34C), the Swiss weather TV channel said.
Even the cooler mountainous regions could see temperatures of 20-22C.
However, some areas may see thunderstorms and rain.
SRF Meteo, the forecasting arm of the Swiss broadcaster, anticipated that the heatwave would peak between Thursday and Sunday, but said it would remain hot until at least the end of the month.
Health advice
When level four red alerts for heatwaves are in place Météo Suisse advises that the public “drink at least 1.5 litres of water per day” and that they “seek out shade and cool rooms, wear appropriate clothing, a hat, and sun protection, close shutters/blinds during the day, and ventilate early in the morning.”
Mary Friel from the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) said: ” The IFRC is urging people to take this heatwave seriously and to look out for those most at risk to save lives.”
The network urged people to stay connected to heat alerts, follow advice from local authorities and check in on those who may be at higher risk.
End in sight?
“It’s almost certain that there will be another period of extreme heat in some areas until Sunday,” SRF Meteo meteorologist Peter Wick told 20 Minuten.
READ ALSO: Heatwave relief: Swiss rail app now shows which trains have aircon
But there’s a lack of consensus on what happens after that.
The European weather model is predicting cooler weather at the start of July, while the American one doesn’t see an end in sight, he explained.
Before then, temperatures could even hit record highs. MeteoNews predicts that, depending on how the weather develops, all-time record highs could be “within reach” in the coming days.
Dog car deaths
The hottest-ever June day was recorded on June 27th 1947 in Basel-Binningen, when temperatures reached 36.9C.
Authorities have also issued a reminder about the danger of leaving dogs in car where temperatures can spike to dangerous levels within minutes even when it doesn’t feel that hot outside.
The below table shows the outdoor temperature (in white on the left) and how quickly temperatures can rise inside a car, potentially reaching up to a life-threatening 50C in just a few minutes.
Image: Peta Germany
This came as three dogs were admitted to an emergency vet with heatstroke in the canton of Schwyz this week after having been left in parked cars without the air-conditioning on. Two of them sadly died.
There are also calls for schools to address the extreme heat with the Union of Teachers in French-speaking Switzerland saying that the extreme heat “requires a coordinated response at national level”.
