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Amidst a persistent heatwave impacting Greece, the Acropolis in Athens will temporarily close on Tuesday.
The ancient citadel, home to numerous significant Greek ruins – will be closed to the public from 13:00 to 17:00 local time (11:00-15:00 BST), according to the country’s culture ministry.
Forecasts predict temperatures as high as 42C (107F) in parts of the nation on Tuesday, prompting a category four wildfire warning, indicating a very high risk, in several regions.
This development coincides with reports of wildfires in other areas of Europe, including France and Spain’s Catalonia region, following a severe early summer heatwave.
Changes to the Acropolis’ operating hours were announced Monday after extreme heat returned to Greece on Sunday.
Tuesday’s closure, with Athens expecting highs of 38C, marks another instance of extreme heat forcing the popular landmark to shut its doors, following similar measures in June and July of last year.
Authorities cited “the safety of workers and visitors” as the reason for the closure, noting that the site attracts tens of thousands of visitors daily, totaling 4.5 million in 2024.
The labour ministry has also mandated a five-hour work stoppage for manual labourers and outdoor workers between 12:00-17:00 on Tuesday in regions anticipated to experience the most intense heat.
The current heatwave is expected to continue into Wednesday, with temperatures reaching 41C and the government issuing the highest category five wildfire warning, signaling a state of alert and extreme risk.
This alert covers four regions: Attica, central Greece, the Peloponnese, and Thessaly. A category four warning is in effect for several other parts of the country.
Relief from the heatwave is anticipated on Thursday as temperatures are expected to decline significantly.
The public has been urged to remain vigilant, and emergency services are on high alert, according to the country’s civil protection agency.
These measures follow 41 wildfires that erupted across Greece on Monday, according to the country’s fire service. Of these, 34 were contained swiftly, while seven remained active into Monday evening.
Elsewhere, in Catalonia, Spain, over 18,000 residents were ordered to remain indoors on Tuesday as a wildfire raged in the eastern province of Tarragona, according to government officials.
Spain’s emergency military unit has been deployed alongside 300 firefighters as strong overnight winds fueled the flames, which have consumed nearly 3,000 hectares (7,413 acres) of land.
Several other parts of the country, which experienced its hottest June on record, are under high alert for wildfires.
In France, Marseille Provence airport announced its closure on Tuesday due to a nearby wildfire spreading rapidly.
Meanwhile, near the southwestern town of Narbonne, over 1,000 firefighters are battling another wildfire. Residents have evacuated their homes, and a motorway linking France and Spain has been shut down.
Much of western and southern Europe has been affected by a scorching early summer heatwave, resulting in thousands of evacuations and the destruction of homes and businesses.
Heatwaves are becoming more frequent due to human-caused climate change, according to the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
The panel has stated that hot weather will become more common and increasingly intense as the planet continues to warm.
The blaze has been raging since Wednesday and fire crews say the conditions are creating new flare-ups, making containment efforts extremely difficult.
Two people are found dead by firefighters in Spain’s Catalonia region, with heat-related fatalities in France and Italy.
Several European regions had their highest temperatures on the last day of June, as a heatwave continues into July.
Dozens of the country’s mainland regions are currently under the second-highest alert as the heatwave continues.
A new heat record for June of 46C was set in Spain this weekend as Europe experiences an intense heatwave.
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