As if the COVID-19 pandemic were not enough, several countries in Europe and America, including the United States and Spain, and even Morocco, are currently facing unbearable heat waves. Expats living in these countries shared their feelings with us.
Spain residents, especially in the south of the country, are having a hard time with the current heatwaves. Although they thought that worst is behind them, the temperatures are likely to rise further again in the next few days. Last weekend, temperatures rose up to 45 ° C in Andalusia due to a mass of hot air coming from the Sahara desert. Paul, who currently lives in Almeria, talks to us about it. “During this current heatwave (the first of the year), the temperature in Almeria, Andalusia in southern Spain has reached a very uncomfortable 42°C."
Obviously, with such temperatures, no one wants to step outside. "Today, it was far too hot to go out, so I stayed in with all the windows closed and shutters down to keep my apartment cool. I live on the top floor, and usually, on hot days, I can open the windows, and there's a nice breeze flowing through my home, but not today. The air is super hot." But Paul also had his share of bad luck. "The air conditioning in my living room and my office broke down, and an engineer can't come and fix them for a couple of days. Fortunately, the aircon in the main bedroom is working so I've temporarily turned this into my office. So, it's me, my laptop and lots of ice-cold water."
Several other regions of Spain, namely Seville and Madrid, are facing a similar situation. Moreover, meteorological services are forecasting very high temperatures for the next few days. So for Anne, a French expat, the best thing to do is head to the Catalan Pyrenees (Cerdanya and Ripolles) during the heat waves. In Valencia last weekend, the thermometer read 30 ° C, and that was already enough to push people to crowded beaches and swimming pools to refresh themselves. Fortunately, France is spared from these extreme conditions for the moment, according to meteorological experts. But not Morocco, where a mass of hot and dry air is creating havoc. Indeed, temperatures of up to 50 ° C have been recorded in several regions.
Andre, an expat in Morocco, is quite used to extreme temperatures since he has lived there for more than ten years. Still, he believes that this is an exceptional phenomenon. “Morocco is certainly famous for its hot climate, but this time it's very serious. It can be dangerous for people my age but who don't enjoy the same comfort as I do", he says. For Andre, it is clear that the heatwave is a result of climate change, and he believes that Moroccans need to prepare for the worst in the coming years. "According to weather forecasts, temperatures should drop slightly in the next few days, but this is only the beginning," he warns.
As we mentioned above, North America, particularly some of the United States and Canada, are experiencing heat waves. In some regions, such as California, rising temperatures have led to forest fires that local authorities are finding hard to control at the moment, and people are being evacuated. Patrick, a French expatriate, talks to us about the situation in the region. “In northern California, we currently have heat waves with temperatures rising up to 45 ° C. With such temperatures, you can't do much, except stay indoors with the air conditioning, or if you're lucky enough to have a swimming pool, spend most of your time there ”. According to US media reports, inhabitants of these regions have been encouraged to reduce their power consumption during the cooler hours of the day to reduce the state's power production load. David, who lives in South Los Angeles, is much more fortunate. "Temperatures here are much cooler, and they have not gone above 25 ° C so far, so the warmth is quite pleasant," he says.
According to scientists, although the country has just experienced the hottest decade on record, the worst is yet to come due to climate change. In certain regions of Canada, especially in British Columbia, the temperature rose to 49.6 ° C. Canadian meteorological services believe that this weather phenomenon named “heat dome” is due to the particularly dry spring. A strong anticyclone is at the origin of the current hot and dry air, descending vertically downwards in the atmosphere and tending to warm up the air close to the surface.
