Cyprus baked under its first serious heatwave of the summer yesterday, as inland temperatures climbed to a punishing 43C during the afternoon, prompting authorities to issue the island’s highest-level weather warning.
The Department of Meteorology’s orange alert ran from noon until 5pm, as the country was transformed into what one might fairly call a furnace.
The heat has not relented after dark either. The capital recorded its warmest night of the summer so far on Wednesday, with temperatures failing to drop below 28C.
Forecasters say similar conditions were expected again, meaning the orange warning would be renewed for daytime hours on Thursday, alongside a fresh yellow warning for overnight lows.
The Ministry of Labour responded by suspending heavy and moderate outdoor work across the island.
On building sites, work halted altogether, with labourers retreating to the shade or confined to light indoor tasks. Tasoula Kyprianidou Leontidou, deputy director of the Labour Inspection Department, said that where work on large sites could not simply stop, employers were expected to rotate staff to less strenuous roles and increase the frequency of rest breaks.
A ban on deliveries by moped and electric scooter was also in force, though some riders were still seen on the streets of Nicosia early in the afternoon. Those spoken to said they had paused their rounds and were heading for shaded spots to wait out the restrictions.
The strain has extended to the power grid, with air conditioning units running at full tilt across the island and the system operator warning of the risk of blackouts.
The combination of extreme heat and a prolonged drought has also pushed wildfire risk into the highest category.
Some relief is in sight, however: forecasters expect temperatures to begin easing from Friday, bringing the island’s first heatwave of the summer to a close.
