Historical disasters

During the summer of 2003 there was an increase of temperatures that affected all Western Europe. In fact, a lot of temperature records were broken. For example, in Amareleja (Portugal) it reached 48°C.

The main cause was the low pressure area around the middle latitudes of the Atlantic Ocean. In particular, the heat was a result of the western European seasonal lag from the maritime influence of the Atlantic warm waters with hot continental air and strong winds from the South.

There were lots of effects on agriculture, mainly in Southern and Western European countries. The production of both wheat and grapes was subjected to a massive reduction. Moreover, the Mediterranean Sea was affected by a big impact on its ecosystem. This caused anomalies on sea surface stratification in the Mediterranean Sea and on the surface currents. The Atlantic Ionian Stream, a seasonal current of the central Mediterranean Sea, was changed in its path and intensity due to the warmer temperatures. The heatwave has also influenced indirectly the reproduction of some fish species living in Mediterranean Sea.

In Italy that summer was among the warmest in the last three centuries and the maximum temperatures of July and August remained above 30 °C. Moreover, the high humidity intensified the perception of heat and population suffering. Here there were over 4000 deaths related to the heat wave and 18000 more than the previous year.

In particular, these are the highest temperatures reached in Italy in 2003