Heat wave to hit seven western, northwestern counties in Romania, Thursday, Friday

Romania's National Weather Administration (ANM) issued on Wednesday a Code Red Heat Warning valid on Thursday and Friday in seven counties in the west and northwest of the country, as well as Code Yellow and Code Orange warnings of thermal discomfort and rapidly changing weather valid for the rest of the country during the day.

According to the forecast, on June 24 and 25, in the counties of Caras-Severin, Timis, Arad, Bihor, Satu Mare, Salaj and Maramures, there will be a heat wave, with extremely high temperatures, comparable to the absolute records for this time of the year. They will be between 39 and 41 degrees Celsius, and in the northwest between 35 and 38 degrees. During the night, temperatures will not fall below 20-24 degrees Celsius.

The Code Orange of heat warning concurrently valid in the southwest and centre of the country, means highs will frequently be between 37 and 39 degrees Celsius in Oltenia and between 35 - 37 degrees Celsius in most of Transylvania. Night values will generally not fall below 20-22 degrees Celsius.

Under the Code Yellow warning on Thursday and Friday, the heat wave will cover the whole country, and thermal discomfort will be high, with the temperature-humidity index (THI) expected to exceed the critical threshold of 80. In Muntenia, Dobrogea, Moldavia and eastern Transylvania, the highs will generally be between 33 and 37 degrees Celsius, and local lows will not fall below 20 degrees Celsius.

ANM says that in mountainous areas and sparsely in the rest of the country, especially in the afternoon and evening, there will be spells of weather instability in the form of torrential downpours, thunderstorms, short-term wind intensifications, storms, and hail.

On Wednesday, between 12:00hrs and 22:00hrs, a Code Yellow warning of thermal discomfort will be in place for the provinces of Oltenia, Maramures, western and northwestern Transylvania, southwestern and central Muntenia, as well as a Code Yellow warning of weather instability in mountainous areas, in Dobrogea, Moldavia, sparsely in Oltenia, Muntenia and Transylvania, that will bring torrential downpours, thunderstorms, storms, strong winds and hail. In short spells water on the ground will exceed 25-40 l/sq.m.

At the same time, on Wednesday, between 12:00hrs and 22:00hrs, in the counties of Caras-Severin, Timis, Arad, Bihor and Satu Mare, there will be an orange heat wave warning under which temperatures will frequently go as high as 37 and 39 degrees Celsius, and at night temperatures will generally not fall below 22-25 degrees Celsius, agerpres report.