Europe sizzles under stubborn heat wave that's only going to get worse

Scorching temperatures across Europe forced the closure of the Acropolis in Athens for a second day as officials warned Saturday of even hotter weather next week, when the mercury is forecast to top 40 C in several popular Mediterranean tourist destinations.

In cities, those venturing out at all drenched themselves in fountains while others sought out pools, the sea or shade in hopes of relief from the heat wave caused by Cerberus, a high-pressure anticyclone coming from the south that's named after the three-headed dog in ancient Greek mythology who guarded the gates to the underworld.

Fifteen cities in Italy, most of them in the country's centre and south, were under heat advisories signalling a high level of risk for older adults, the infirm, infants and other vulnerable people.

Temperatures remained in the mid-30s C across much of the Italian peninsula on Saturday but were expected to reach between 38 C and 40 C in Sardinia, Sicily and Puglia.

The cities under alerts included the tourist destinations of Bologna, Florence and Rome. The capital hit a high of 35 C on Saturday and was expected to see temperatures as high as 42 C on Tuesday, when other Italian cities could be even hotter.

In Greece's capital, where the temperature was forecast to reach 41 C, officials decided to keep the sun-baked Acropolis monument closed from noon to 5:30 p.m. local time, as they did on Friday.

Czech temperatures soared to a new record high for any July 15. The thermometer hit 38.6 C at Plzen-Bolevec in western Czechia, up from the previous record of 36.8 C for this day set in Podebrady, east of Prague in 2007, the Czech Hydrometeorological Institute said.

Temperatures were milder in Spain's Canary Islands, but a wildfire on the island of La Palma caused a preventive evacuation of some 500 people. Officials warned that shifting winds and the area's rain-parched dry terrain could increase the number of evacuees.

Nationwide, however, at least 30 of Spain's provincial capitals had projected daily high temperatures of 30 C or above, according to the website of AEMET, the state meteorology agency.

A half-dozen Spanish cities — Albacete, Córdoba, Granada, Lleida, Málaga and Zaragoza — were to see maximum temperatures of at least 37 C.

The European Space Agency, whose satellites monitor land and sea temperatures, has warned that Italy, Spain, France, Germany and Poland are all facing extreme conditions.

Authorities in Poland warned older adults in particular to stay indoors or in the shade and well-hydrated as temperatures reached 35 C on Saturday.

In downtown Warsaw and in other cities, makeshift hose fountains were arranged to let people and their pets cool off. Police issued warnings about not leaving children or pets unattended inside cars. 

Doctors in Spain warned that poorer elderly people with existing health problems were most at risk.