Europe heat wave puts all major Italian cities on red alert as Austria sets heat record

ROME (AP) — Italy placed all of its major cities under the highest heat alert Thursday as a blistering heat wave gripped Europe, setting a national temperature record in Austria, fueling wildfires in France and disrupting energy and transport systems across the continent.

The extreme weather has pushed temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) in several countries, prompting health warnings for millions of people.

Across Europe, authorities are grappling with the consequences of extreme heat: health alerts for millions in Italy, record temperatures in Austria, drought-related disruptions to energy and shipping in Central Europe, and wildfires stretching from France to the Balkans.

Scientists and officials warn that such events are becoming more frequent and intense as the climate warms.

From the Mediterranean to Central Europe, prolonged heat, drought and wildfire conditions are increasingly becoming defining features of summer. The current heat wave has exposed vulnerabilities in public health systems, power generation, transportation networks and tourism infrastructure, forcing governments and businesses to adapt to more frequent periods of extreme weather.

Italy’s Health Ministry placed all 27 cities monitored under its national heat surveillance system on red alert Thursday — the first time this year the entire network has been under the highest warning level simultaneously.

The alerts stretch from Trieste in the northeast to Palermo in Sicily and signal a health risk for the entire population, not only vulnerable groups such as older adults and people with chronic illnesses.

Authorities urged residents and tourists to avoid direct sunlight during the hottest hours of the day, remain indoors where possible and drink plenty of water as temperatures in some areas approached 40 C (104 F).

The heat has also forced adjustments at major tourist attractions. The ministries of tourism and culture extended evening opening hours at landmarks including Rome’s Colosseum and Pantheon.

Cooling mist fans have been installed at the Colosseum’s entrances and additional medical stations have been made available.

The most intense temperatures were recorded in Austria, where the mercury reached 41.2 C (106.2 F) on Wednesday in the village of Bad Deutsch-Altenburg near the Slovak border, according to GeoSphere Austria. It was the highest temperature ever recorded in the country.

Austria is also facing severe drought. Rainfall from Jan. 1 through June 30 was 27% below the long-term average nationwide, while some eastern regions received only half their normal precipitation.

Climatologist Alexander Orlik said some parts of the country had not experienced such dry conditions since 1885.

In Hungary, prolonged drought and record-low water levels on the Danube River have severely affected the country’s only nuclear power plant, which relies on river water to cool its reactors.

Plant operators have reduced output to about 10% of normal production, prompting the government to introduce emergency conservation measures as a record-breaking heat wave grips the country.

Authorities have asked major industrial users and households to cut electricity consumption, particularly during peak demand hours between 5 p.m. and 10 p.m. Freight trains have been barred from operating during those hours, while decorative lighting on landmarks in Budapest has been switched off.

Several major companies, including energy company Mol, pharmaceutical maker Gedeon Richter and automakers Suzuki, Mercedes-Benz, Audi and BMW have announced plans to curb electricity use.

The government also canceled parliamentary sessions this week in an effort to conserve power.

The heat wave has shattered temperature records across the country. On Wednesday night, Budapest recorded its warmest overnight low temperature on record, with temperatures falling only to 28 degrees Celsius (82 degrees Fahrenheit), underscoring the persistence of the extreme heat.

Germany faced growing concerns over the impact of drought on transportation and industry as water levels on the Rhine and other rivers continued to fall.

Transport Minister Steffen Bilger met affected organizations Thursday and warned that low water levels posed major challenges for inland waterway shipping, industry and the broader logistics chain.

Environmental group BUND urged authorities to focus not only on the economic impacts but also on making rivers more resilient to climate change by retaining more water in landscapes and reducing withdrawals during periods of drought.

In southeastern France, firefighters maintained a large presence in the Var region after authorities said a major wildfire there was no longer spreading but remained capable of reigniting.

The blaze, which began July 20, has burned more than 60 square kilometers (23 square miles), making it the largest recorded in the region in recent decades.

Authorities warned that strong winds and extremely dry conditions left southeastern France at very high risk for additional wildfires.

The heat wave reached its peak across the Balkans on Thursday as temperatures neared 40 C (104 F) and authorities battled drought and wildfires.

In Serbia, firefighters struggled to contain several blazes after days of dry weather. One major fire burned through pine forests west of Belgrade, while another spread near the central town of Kraljevo, where difficult terrain complicated firefighting efforts.

In neighboring Croatia, tourists in Dubrovnik sought refuge in shade and avoided beaches during the hottest hours of the day as temperatures soared along the Adriatic coast.

———

Associated Press journalists Sylvie Corbet in Paris, Jovana Gec in Belgrade, Serbia and Karel Janicek in Prague contributed to this report.

Tourists use umbrellas for shade as they visit Rome's ancient Forum, Saturday, Aug. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Tourists use handheld fans as they pause in Piazza del Campidoglio on Rome's Capitoline Hill, Saturday, Aug. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Tourists take shelter as they walk in front of the Rome'a ancient Colosseum, Saturday, Aug. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

A gray heron crouches among water lilies while searching for prey in Mattheiser Pond, where the water level has dropped and the shoreline is nearly dry following several days of prolonged dry weather, in Trier, Germany, Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026. (Harald Tittel/dpa via AP)

Water lilies form small islands on Mattheiser Pond. where the water level has dropped and the shoreline is nearly dry following several days of prolonged dry weather, in Trier, Germany, Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026. (Harald Tittel/dpa via AP)

YAOUNDE, Cameroon (AP) — Cameroon President Paul Biya on Thursday reached two months since the last time he was inside the borders of his country, a prolonged absence that has raised concerns for his health and criticisms about a possible power vacuum in the Central African nation.

The world’s oldest president, who has led Cameroon since 1982, began his eighth term in office in November after winning a widely disputed election in October. But the 93-year-old left the country on June 7 for what Biya's office described as “a brief private stay in Europe” that has become one of his longest trips overseas.

The health of the president has long been a topic of speculation as he spends significant time in Europe, including France and Switzerland, where he often spends weeks while leaving governance to key party officials and family members.

Cameroon’s constitution does not specifically prohibit a president from leaving the country for months. But without a vice president, an appointment Biya has full control over, the opposition has described the country as being run on “auto pilot.”

Opposition leader Issa Tchiroma Bakary, the presidential runner-up in November and a former Biya ally, said Thursday there is a widespread perception in Cameroon that “all is not well” with Biya, whose absence has angered the opposition.

“Biya’s very long stay in Switzerland only aggravates that lack of legitimacy and his desperate attempts to hold on to power by force,” Tchiroma said in a text message from exile in The Gambia.

The results of his nearly half-century in power have been mixed. Armed insurgencies by Boko Haram in the north and separatists in the west, along with a stagnant economy, have left many young people disillusioned with the leader.

Wilson Tamfuh, a professor of Public and International Law at the University of Dschang, compared Cameroon to a human body that is “seriously sick.”

“Even if Biya still proves to be strong at this age, it is clear that his health challenges are taking a toll on his leadership. Cabinet reshuffles over the past 15 years have amounted to little more than recycling the same people from one ministry to another,” Tamfuh said.

Biya's 2025 reelection sparked widespread protests that left at least four people dead, signaling significant tensions between the mostly young population and its aging leader.

On Monday, Biya reshuffled the top military leadership, replacing commanders of four of the country’s five joint military regions and promoting several senior officers to higher ranks. No official reason was given, but one of the replaced commanders had died and another retired.

Biya came to power following the resignation of Cameroon’s first president, Ahmadou Ahidjo, who served from 1960 to 1982.

A 2008 constitutional amendment abolished term limits, and Biya has now led Cameroon longer than most of its citizens have been alive: more than 70% of the country’s population of nearly 30 million people is below the age of 35.

If he serves his entire term, Biya will leave office at nearly 100 years old.

Wilson McMakin in Dakar, Senegal, contributed to this report.

FILE - Cameroon's President Paul Biya, of the Cameroon People's Democratic Movement party, waits to cast his vote during the presidential elections, Oct. 7, 2018, in Yaounde, Cameroon. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba, File)