British holidaymakers have been warned of sweltering temperatures of up to 42C in holiday hotspots such as Spain and Portugal this week.
Spanish weather forecaster Aemet issued warnings for "intense heat" in many popular regions of Spain and the Canary Islands for this week.
Meanwhile, the UK Met Office warned that a heatwave was affecting Spain, Portugal and Morocco this week - as many Brits head abroad for the school holidays.
The weather warning states: “Temperatures peaking in the mid to high 40s in places but will ease back towards the end of the week.”
Aemet said: "Temperatures are set to be very high for most of this week. Temperatures of 40C to 42C will be reached in parts of the centre and south of the peninsula, and even higher locally.
“Intense heat will also be present in the Canary Islands. Very warm night-time temperatures will be present in much of the territory."
Heading to southwest Europe on holiday this week?
— Met Office (@metoffice) July 22, 2024
Parts of Spain, Portugal and Morocco are in the midst of a heatwave through the early part of this week 🔆
Temperatures peaking in the mid to high 40s in places but will ease back towards the end of the week 🌡️ pic.twitter.com/PYh9s19SSX
On Wednesday, Madrid could reach as high as 39C, Seville 43C, and Lisbon up to 37C, forecasters predict.
But it will be even hotter in Marrakech which is expected to hit 46C on the same day.
The Met Office said daytime temperatures were between five and ten degrees higher than the seasonal average.
Local authorities in Spain have issued health alerts amid the heat and warned of a high risk of wildfires.
Last week, homeless people in the capital Madrid were given shelter in an air condition centre with food and drinks amid the high heat.
Andalusia, the Balaeric Islands, Castile and Leon, Castilla la Mancha, Galicia and Madrid already had yellow heat warnings in place by local authorities.
On Tuesday, warnings are set to increase to include 11 regions, with Madrid, Galicia, Estremadura, Castile and Leon and Andalusia receiving orange heat alerts.
Meanwhile, Greece has also being experiencing a heatwave last week, which brought forest fires and 43C temperatures.
