Earthquake damages part of Pompeii site in southern Italy
ROME, June 5 (Reuters) - A minor earthquake in southern Italy has caused the partial collapse of a wall and a portion of a vault at the Pompeii archaeological site, authorities said on Thursday.
The quake with a magnitude of 3.2 on Thursday morning was the latest in a series of tremors centred on the nearby Campi Flegrei super volcano close to the city of Naples.
The affected area of Pompeii had been damaged in a major earthquake that hit southern Italy in 1980 and had since been shored up and restored.
There were no frescoes or movable relics in the damaged structure and no one was injured.
Gabriel Zuchtriegel, the site's director, said checks were being carried out to ensure no other areas had been affected.
The ancient settlement of Pompeii was destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD.
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The Independent
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Daily Mail
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Urgent warning to Brit holidaymakers as 'suffocating' 46C European heatwave triggers invasion of venomous sea creatures in the Med - as hunt continues for UK tourist missing on Greek island
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Agnès Pannier-Runacher, The French Minister for Ecological Transition, told Sud Radio that there were 44 million people nationwide living in 'heat islands', where the temperature could be as much as 4 or 5C higher than the measured temperature. The heat island effect means built-up areas are often much hotter than nearby rural areas due to human-made surfaces that absorb the heat, like buildings and roads. Densely populated city areas can be as much as 12C warmer than the surrounding countryside. Dr Radhika Khosla, Associate Professor at the Smith School of Enterprise and Environment, University of Oxford, said: 'Populations in urban areas like London are particularly susceptible to extreme heat as the concrete and asphalt absorb and re-emit the sun's radiation, amplifying its impact on our bodies. 'For this reason, outdoor workers are particularly at risk and should take regular breaks to hydrate in the shade.' To the east, Greece and Turkey have been hit hard by wildfires, causing chaos for tourists as hundreds of passengers were left stranded. A huge fire ripped through the popular resort of Foça, İzmir, in Turkey before strong winds fanned the flames and sent it towards neighbourhoods and residential areas. One suspect has been accused of starting the fire when they allegedly set fire to their own house, and tinder-dry conditions saw the blaze spread at pace. In the wake of the fire in Turkey, flights at İzmir Adnan Menderes Airport had closed temporarily as of 4pm local time on Sunday. Hundreds of passengers have now been left stranded as a result of the blazes. Alvaro Iturmendi, travel insurance expert at said that in light of the wildfires, 'several airlines are adjusting their schedules'. 'This mix of cancellations and ongoing services may leave many travellers uncertain about their upcoming trips. 'If you're due to fly to Izmir or nearby areas, your first step should be to contact your airline for the latest updates. 'With the wildfires affecting transport links and air quality in the region, it's important to plan ahead and monitor official travel advice.' 'Airlines should refund you if your flight is officially cancelled, or help you arrange an alternative. However, if your flight is still scheduled and you decide not to travel, you may not automatically be entitled to a refund.' The insurance comparison website offers guidance on flight cancellations. Planes were seen dumping large amounts of water over the infernos in an attempt to fight the blazes in Turkey over the weekend. Residents watched in horror as their homes went up in flames while firefighters spent more than 22 hours tackling the huge blaze across İzmir. The major emergency response involved 625 personnel, including six helicopters, 46 fire engines, nine bulldozers and 13 water supply vehicles. Around 550 residents were evacuated from some 175 homes in Ilıpınar, Foça. Four firefighters were reportedly affected by smoke poisoning, with two of them taken to hospital. The exact cause of the fire remains unknown. Another suggestion is that the fire may have been caused by a high-voltage power line. Governor Süleyman Elban urged residents to be cautious over the next few days. He said low humidity and high temperatures could lead to more fires. The governor said: 'We expect the next four or five days to be very hot, with strong winds and low humidity. These conditions are perfect for a fire. 'Everyone's life is at stake. We must all be extremely cautious.' Wildfires were also reported in Kahramanmaraş, Bursa, Sakarya, Bilecik, Gaziantep, Bolu and Manisa this week. Environment Minister Murat Kurum said 23 houses and 47 units in 3 villages were destroyed in forest fires in Bilecik, while 41 houses and 25 barns and warehouses were also severely damaged. A large wildfire broke out south of Athens on Thursday, forcing evacuations and road closures near the ancient Temple of Poseidon. Strong winds spread the flames, damaging homes and sending smoke across the sky. Greek authorities deployed 130 firefighters, 12 planes and 12 helicopters to battle the blaze, while police evacuated 40 people, with five areas under evacuation orders. A Lancet Public Health study published last year highlighted the increasing risk of heat-related deaths because of climate change. The study predicted that heat-related deaths could more than quadruple by midcentury under current climate policies. The hottest place in the UK on Sunday was London's St James's Park - which hit a smouldering 31C. The country's weather service Meteo France put a record 84 out of its 101 regional departments on an orange heatwave alert - the second-highest - for Monday. Spain's weather service AEMET said temperatures in Extremadura and Andalusia, in the south and southwest, had reached up to 44C Sunday and issued a special warning amid the heatwave. Several areas in the southern half of Portugal, including Lisbon, are under a red warning until Monday night, said the Portuguese Institute for Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA). Two-thirds of Portugal was also on high alert Sunday for extreme heat and forest fires - as was the Italian island of Sicily, where firefighters tackled 15 blazes Saturday. In Italy, 21 cities were on high alert for extreme heat, including Milan, Naples, Venice, Florence and Rome. 'We were supposed to be visiting the Colosseum, but my mum nearly fainted,' said British tourist Anna Becker, who had travelled to Rome from a 'muggy, miserable' Verona. Hospital emergency departments across Italy have reported an uptick in heatstroke cases, according to Mario Guarino, vice president of the Italian Society of Emergency Medicine. 'We've seen around a 10 percent increase, mainly in cities that not only have very high temperatures but also a higher humidity rate. It is mainly elderly people, cancer patients or homeless people, presenting with dehydration, heat stroke, fatigue,' he said. In Venice, authorities offered free guided tours for people over 75s in air-conditioned museums and public buildings. Meanwhile, temperatures are set to soar to 34C in the UK on Monday. Experts have also warned that heatwaves can impact mood and behaviour. Dr Laurence Wainwright, Departmental Lecturer at the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, University of Oxford, said: 'While news coverage of hot weather usually includes images of sunbathing and ice creams, an often-overlooked consequence of heatwaves is their negative impact on our mental health and behaviour. 'Violent incidents increase, depression worsens and the effect of psychiatric medications on our body can be altered. For every 1°C increase in monthly average temperature, mental health-related deaths increase by around 2.2%. 'Spikes in relative humidity also result in a higher occurrence of suicide. Learning to adapt to the increasing frequency of heatwaves brought by climate change will mean taking account of all its impacts – including on our state of mind.' Britain bathed in balmy 30C heat on Sunday to round off a sweltering weekend and there is set to be no relief overnight, with temperatures in England and Northern Ireland remaining in the late teens. And things will get even toastier at the start of next week with the mercury reaching 26C in the southeast by 10am on Monday before hitting highs in the mid 30s by the afternoon. A weather map shows that London and the southeast will experience the highest figures, with 31C expected in the Midlands and 28C in the northwest and west of the country. The Met Office wrote on X: 'Here is the 4cast for Monday. Hot across southeast England in particular with temperatures reaching 34 Celsius.' The toasty temperatures will threaten the UK's June record of 35.6C - set in the famously hot summer of 1976. It comes after fires devastated towns in Greece, where some regions have had to declare a state of emergency. On Thursday, a violent forest fire devastated several seaside towns east of Athens, damaging homes and prompting dozens of evacuations in a popular destination for Greek and foreign tourists. The fire broke around 12.30pm local time (9.30am UK time) near the towns of Palaia Fokaia and Thymari, around 30 miles east of Athens, and forced the evacuation of five villages, according to Greek firefighters. It comes on the heels of another fire on the island of Chios - Greece's fifth-largest island - which as of Wednesday had destroyed more than 10,000 acres of land in four days. Temperatures reached up to 40 degrees Celsius in the Athens region on Thursday, with forecasts indicating that the heatwave could continue until Saturday. In the previous 24 hours, 45 fires had broken out in Greece, firefighters said. Earlier this week, hundreds of firefighters backed up by aircraft were battling a wildfire burning out of control for the three days on the Greek island of Chios. Towering walls of flames tore through forest and agricultural land on the island as reinforcements were hurried in from Athens, Thessaloniki and the nearby island of Lesbos. By Tuesday morning, the fire department said 444 firefighters with 85 vehicles were tackling the blaze on scattered fronts. Eleven helicopters and two water-dropping planes were providing air support. Emergency services issued evacuation orders for villages and settlements in the area, when fires broke out near the island's main town. Apocalyptic scenes captured in images and videos showed firefighters battling the flames as the wildfires raged on, while thick plumes of black smoke filled the sky. Other footage showed helicopters spraying water over smoke-filled fields. The fire department has sent an arson investigation team to Chios to examine the cause of the blaze. 'We are faced with simultaneous fires in multiple, geographically unconnected parts of the island - a pattern that cannot be considered coincidental,' Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Minister Giannis Kefalogiannis said Monday from Chios. Authorities, he said, were 'very seriously examining the possibility of an organized criminal act, in other words arson.' The minister said police forces on the island had been reinforced, while military patrols had been doubled. 'Whoever thinks that they can play with the lives of citizens and cause chaos with premeditated actions will be led to court,' Kefalogiannis said. 'Arson is a serious crime and will be dealt with as such.'
