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A new heatwave is on its way to central and southern Italy; it is set to be the most intense of the summer

The number of ‘red alerts’ is on the rise: on Thursday 27 August, there will be three – in Bari, Campobasso and Palermo. Cooler weather is expected in the northern regions

by Pietro Menzani

25 August 2026

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3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

A new heatwave – the fifth of the year – is set to hit the country. The heatwave won’t last long (the situation could improve as early as the second half of the weekend) but it will be particularly intense in central and southern Italy, where it is forecast to be the most severe of the entire season, with temperatures peaking well above 40 degrees. “The worst days,” explains Lorenzo Tedici, head meteorologist at iLMeteo.it, “will be Thursday 27th, Friday 28th and Saturday 29th” August. The northern part of the peninsula, where further showers and thunderstorms are expected, will largely be spared, maintaining a cooler and more comfortable climate.

The red stickers

The number of red alerts is on the rise again. Following a brief lull around mid-August, the highest alert level has returned in some municipalities – particularly in the south and on the islands – indicating emergency conditions with potential adverse effects even on the health of healthy, active people, and not just on those in at-risk groups.

On Wednesday 26 August, Campobasso and Palermo will be on ‘red’ alert, with Bari joining them the following day. The number of ‘orange’ alerts is also rising: nine are forecast for Thursday 27 August, in Ancona, Cagliari, Catania, Florence, Latina, Messina, Reggio Calabria, Rieti and Rome, confirming that the situation is most critical in central and southern Italy.

Consequently, the number of urban centres where the minimum alert level remains in place is falling. On Thursday, only six of the 27 municipalities monitored by the Ministry of Health in its daily heatwave bulletin will remain ‘in the green’. Most of these regional capitals are located in the north of the country, with the exception of Frosinone; they are Milan, Genoa, Turin, Trieste and Venice.

The New Wave

In central and southern Italy, therefore, the subtropical high-pressure system that has brought extreme temperatures throughout the summer does not appear set to retreat any time soon. According to forecasts from iLMeteo.it, the intense heat is set to return from Thursday 27 August: ‘A deep trough is approaching from Northern Europe, set to move towards the ocean off the coast of Portugal. This will create the conditions for a surge of very hot air from North Africa, heading straight for the Mediterranean and Italia.’

The heatwave is therefore set to peak between Thursday and Friday, with temperatures of 42 degrees forecast in some areas of the province of Foggia. According to Tedici, temperatures will even reach 43–44 degrees along the central Adriatic coast, on the major islands and in Calabria.

Sardinia will also be at the epicentre of the fifth heatwave of the year, where the regional civil protection agency has issued a new heatwave warning, effective from 10.00 am on Wednesday 26 August and lasting at least until the morning of Saturday 29 August, explaining that very high maximum temperatures (above 37 degrees) are expected across the region, with peaks of up to 42–44 degrees in inland areas. Minimum temperatures are forecast to be above 24–25 degrees across most of the region, with more tropical nights on the way.

Central and Northern Italy

Central Italy will also be affected by extreme temperatures, with highs of up to 39 degrees in Rome and 37 in Florence, where, following thunderstorms and strong gusts of wind, the orange heat alert will be reinstated from Thursday 27th. In the north, however, Emilia-Romagna is among the regions most affected by the heat, with temperatures approaching 36 degrees in Bologna and Ferrara.

Italia, however, remains divided, with the northern part of the peninsula still affected by bad weather: over the next few days, ‘some unsettled weather will affect the northern regions, where weak inflows of cooler, more unstable air will brush against the Alps, the Pre-Alps and parts of the upper Po Valley. It is precisely in these areas, particularly during the hottest part of the day, that showers and thunderstorms may develop, which could even be of high intensity in some places’, explains iMeteo.it.

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