Key points
- 132 weather stations registered record temperatures for July: officials
- Turkey is currently in the grip of a heatwave
- Greece is also suffering a heatwave
ISLAMABAD: Turkey’s environment ministry has said that meteorologists had registered a reading of 50.5°C in the southeast of the country, a countrywide record.
The ministry said in a statement that the record temperature was registered on Friday at Silopi.
And across the country, 132 weather stations had registered record temperatures for the month of July.
The previous heat record in temperature, recorded in August 2023, was 49.5°C.
High readings
According to Anadolu news agency, other high readings included 49.6°C (121.3°F) in Kiziltepe, 49.4°C (120.9°F) in Cizre, and 49.3°C (120.7°F) in Nusaybin. In total, six weather stations across the country recorded temperatures above 49°C (120.2°F).
Turkey is currently in the grip of a heatwave and is fighting fires in a number of regions.
Firefighters have been struggling for four days to contain one in the northern Karabuk province, forcing the evacuation of several villagers.
Heatwave
On Wednesday, 10 people perished fighting a fire in Eskisehir province, according to AFP.
The heatwave, which is likely to last several days more, has forced some local authorities to announce restrictions on water consumption, including the seaside resort of Cesme, near Izmir on Turkey’s west coast.
Neighbouring Greece is also suffering a heatwave and battling fires in several parts of the country.
