Cerberus heatwave: Southern Europe faces record 48.8C temperatures as first life lost

Tourists have been warned to exercise "extreme caution" as Europe is gripped by a heatwave which is expected to get worse.

Cerberus is now thought to have claimed its first life, after a 44-year-old man painting a zebra crossing in the Italian town of Lodi, near Milan, collapsed and later died amid 40C heat, according to The Times.

The heatwave – named after the three-headed monster from Greek mythology – may escalate even further, with temperatures expected to climb as high as 48C on the islands of Sicily and Sardinia.

This could potentially be the hottest temperature ever recorded in Europe – topping last year's sweltering summer which, according to a recent study, saw 60,000 deaths related to heatwaves on the continent.

Here, Yahoo News explains what is causing the Cerberus heatwave and how long it is expected to last.

What is the Cerberus heatwave?

Cerberus – named after the three-headed monster from Greek mythology – is an area of high-pressure originating from the Sahara desert.

The creature also appears in Dante's Inferno – guarding the third circle of hell, with meteorologist Stefano Rossi telling La Stampa that the heatwave's name is no coincidence.

“Metaphorically, the three heads indicate the three main climatic zones into which Italy will be divided,” he added.

Read more: Climate change will jump to a whole new level in 2024 thanks to El Niño

The south of the country will be hit particularly badly with temperatures in Sicily expected to pass a record of 48.8C in Sicily in the coming days, according to the European Space Agency.

The last time the record was set was on 11 August 2021, when 48.8C was recorded in Floridia, an Italian town in the Sicilian province of Syracuse.

Rome, Bologna and Florence are among 10 Italian cities that have been put under a red alert for extreme heat.

Read more: Here's When The Weather In The UK Will Actually Improve

It's not only Italy that has been affected, with Spain, France, Germany and Poland all facing particularly high temperatures.

Temperatures are predicted to hit 45C in southeastern areas of the Iberian Peninsula, Spanish forecasters warn, while the mercury could reach 44C in parts of Greece this week.

Read more: Cerberus heatwave: Southern Europe hit by sweltering temperatures with highs of 45C

The high pressure area that is causing this heatwave is also known as an anticyclone – a large wind system that rotates around a centre of high atmospheric pressure — clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere.

The air is descending, which stops the formation of clouds, which can bring prolonged periods of dry and hot weather.

Read more: Does drinking hot drinks really cool you down in warm weather?

How long will the heatwave last?

The Cerberus is expected to last for the next two weeks, according to the World Meteorological Organisation.

Even when this heatwave is over, Europe is likely to face increasing challenges related to extreme weather in the coming summers.

The European Environment Agency says long-term climate projections indicate that southern and central Europe will become even drier and hotter throughout the 21st century with "devastating consequences for the agriculture sector".

Read more: Should we dim the sun to help curb climate change?

It adds that the total economic loss across all sectors linked to droughts are expected to rise by the end of this century from the current €9bn per year to €25bn.

Meanwhile El Niño, a weather pattern confirmed this month to have emerged in the tropical Pacific for the first time in seven years is already causing high surface air temperatures around the world.

Kevin Trenberth, a scientist from the University of Auckland in New Zealand, has warned that this could pushing global warming "to the next level" – potentially 1.4C above pre-industrial levels.

Watch: Wildfire hits Turkey as southern Europe swept by heatwave