Europe is set to bake with another heatwave that will see areas reach up to 37C.
Spain and Portugal are set to break new records over the next few days with an unusually late-in-the-year spike in temperatures.
The heat is being credited to an area of high pressure crossing southern Europe and another high-pressure system forming inland, bringing warm air from Africa towards the Iberian Peninsula.
Temperatures of between 34C and 37C are expected in Cordoba and Seville as well as the Beja region of Portugal.
Stable weather with clear skies has been forecast by the Spanish Meteorological Agency (Aemet) with some drizzle possible near the coast in Galicia and Cantabria.
Inland there will be temperatures closer to 30C and nights will be hot at 20C or more.
There will be some fog banks on the coast of the Spanish mainland and Balearic Islands and there may be some Saharan dust moving into the area later in the day.
The high temperatures could persist into next week and even if they drop will likely be higher than normal.
These temperatures are about five to eight degrees hotter than the average for the month of September, according to the Portuguese Institute for the Sea and Atmosphere.
From today (September 29), the weather in Europe will be influenced by an “intense anticyclonic ridge localised over Western Europe, associated with the transport of a mass of hot, dry air originating in North Africa”.
France could also see the heatwave, being set to reach temperatures of up to 33C in the south and certain areas 7C higher than average.
There are warnings that the heatwave could lead to an increase in dangerous rural fires and drownings.
The Portuguese Institute for the Sea and Atmosphere has said that the heatwave along with the decreased humidity could contribute to the danger of rural fires especially in the Algarve and inland regions.
And the Portuguese Federation of Lifeguards has warned of a”high risk of drowning” this weekend, due to high temperatures and the end of lifeguarding season on most beaches.
