The Portuguese Institute for Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA) has placed 12 of mainland Portugal's 18 districts under a red alert (the highest level on the scale, which signals an "extreme weather risk situation"), from Thursday and at least until Saturday, because of the forecast heat, with the "persistence of extremely high temperatures, both daytime highs and night-time lows".
The red alert for heat will be extended from this Thursday to the districts of Beja, Évora, Portalegre and Santarém, as well as Lisbon and Setúbal, and on Friday it will be widened to Aveiro, Braga, Porto and Viana do Castelo, along with Coimbra and Leiria.
The remaining six mainland districts – Bragança, Castelo Branco, Faro, Guarda, Vila Real and Viseu – will be under an orange alert (the second-highest level on the scale, signalling a "weather situation of moderate to high risk") between Thursday and Saturday, according to IPMA.
The previous weather forecasts, issued on Wednesday, had only the districts of Lisbon and Setúbal under a red alert for heat from Thursday, extending on Friday to Coimbra and Leiria.
In a statement, IPMA says a "prolonged spell of very hot, dry weather" is expected, with maximum temperatures reaching between 35 and 41°C across most of the country, and between 41 and 44°C in the Tagus valley and the Alentejo.
