Switzerland, like much of Europe, is currently in the grip of an oppressive heatwave that still hasn’t peaked as red level danger warnings remained in place in parts of the country on Monday.
Switzerland will bake in hot temperatures this week with the mercury set to be over 30C in much of the country. National forecaster Météo Suisse has raised warning levels in western Switzerland, with several parts of the country now on red alert.
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.
Parts of Switzerland were under red weather warnings on Monday. Image: Météo Suisse.
The forecaster is predicting highs of between 33C and 36C on Monday and 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.
Level four is the second-highest of the five-level system and means “high danger” with a “severe risk of circulatory problems and physical discomfort”.
Wednesday will see temperatures in Switzerland hit 35C. Image Météo France.
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More red weather warnings
Residents are unlikely to get any respite overnight either as lows of at least 20C are expected in the German-speaking city all week.
Several areas of western Switzerland were upgraded to level 4 on Monday as nighttime lows were expected to remain above 20C. Red weather warnings are now in place for the regions around Sion, Lausanne and Geneva.
Level-three amber warnings have been issued across much of the rest of the country except around the high peaks of Piz Medel, Muttler and Dufourspitze.
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 FRance 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.”
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”.
