More heat and humidity: a ‘red alert’ in 19 cities on Monday
Extreme temperatures will take a heavy toll in terms of loss of life: by the end of summer, the death toll could reach 8,000
The sweltering heat and high temperatures continue, despite scattered and often heavy showers affecting northern Italia. Even on Monday, 19 cities will be on ‘red alert’, the highest alert level for potential health risks. And the tropical nights, persistent heat and extreme temperatures will have a heavy toll in terms of lives lost: by the end of summer, the additional deaths linked to heatwaves could number between 5,000 and 8,000.
Red alert for 19 towns
2026 is one of the hottest summers ever recorded in the country, with temperatures in many areas having already exceeded those of 2003. On Saturday 8 August, 26 out of the 27 major urban centres monitored by the Ministry of Health recorded the highest alert level.
On Sunday and Monday, however, the red alert applies to 19 areas: Ancona, Bari, Bologna, Campobasso, Catania, Civitavecchia, Florence, Frosinone, Genoa, Latina, Messina, Naples, Palermo, Perugia, Pescara, Reggio Calabria, Rieti, Rome and Viterbo.
The impact on mortality
It is difficult at present to quantify the impact in terms of human lives. The only projections available are based on estimates that compare the current year with previous years. “If the current weather pattern were to continue until after mid-August – explains Fabrizio Pregliasco, director of the Postgraduate School of Hygiene and Preventive Medicine at the University of Milan – we can expect excess mortality to be between 10 and 20 per cent higher than last summer’. In absolute terms, according to Pregliasco, “this could translate into 1,500–3,000 additional deaths in Italia compared with the summer of 2025, when 4,597 deaths were recorded according to an EU source. The overall death toll from heatwaves could thus reach 5,000–8,000 excess deaths.”
Workplace rules
High temperatures, in fact, increase the risk of cardiac and respiratory problems, leading to a rise in A&E visits and hospital admissions, particularly among the elderly and those with underlying health conditions. And with the extreme heat, workplace rules are also changing: the green light has been given for shorts and shorter skirts, made from lightweight fabrics, for employees of Arca Puglia, the Regional Agency for Housing and Living, provided they comply with the “principles of modesty and decorum”, as stated in the letter sent to staff. Heat and drought are also taking their toll on the environment.
