ARCHIVED - Murcia hottest place in Spain on Monday with 44.1 degrees

The Murcia region has been brought to a virtual standstill today, with the region on a combination of yellow, orange and red heat alerts

The agricultural working day was reduced to a half-day, school summer camps were closed, the regional Sierra Espuña park was closed, parks and gardens in the cities were taped off and closed amidst fears of falling branches should trees suffer heat stress as has occurred many times before, and cool sports pavilions were habilitated for the homeless as the region prepared for the heatwave to hit.

Most Murcianos took the advice given by the regional government to remain inside if possible and keep out of the hot streets, maintaining hydration as temperatures soared.

The area worst affected was Murcia city and the whole of the Segura River Valley which runs up through Blanca, Archena, Cieza etc, on a red alert for up to 44 degrees.

Many were lulled into a false sense of security when the day dawned with a strange hazy cloudcover and a stormy atmosphere, winds gusting on the coast. But 1,000 metres above our heads the cloud cover was in fact an enormous cloud of suspended red dust particles, carried over to Spain from the African Continent, by the mass of hot air that would shortly cover the region, bringing this stifling heat.

At 16.26 on Monday afternoon, the Aemet weather-monitoring station in Murcia city officially hit 44 degrees, and at 16:30, the temperature rose to 44.1, the air so hot that it tasted as though it was burning.

Neighbouring Alicante is also on a red alert, but the highest temperature recorded there was 42.2 in Elche.

The 44.1 in Murcia city proved to be the hottest temperature of the day, and the higest in all of Spain, failing to break the record for the hottets day ever, but still enough to remind residents how serious the threat of global warming is, and the need to respect the environment.

Hottest temperatures recorded during the day:

    Murcia 44,1

    Elche 43,2

    Orihuela 43,1

    Fuente Álamo 43

    Molina de Segura 42,6

    Alhama de Murcia 42,5

    Novelda 42,3

    Totana 42,2

    Lorca 42

    Torre Pacheco 42