Sicily recorded Europe's highest ever temperature today as it sweltered in a 119F 'heat dome' as hot air from the Sahara continued to engulf large parts of the Mediterranean region.
The region's agriculture-meteorological information service (SIAS) said a record-breaking 119.8F was recorded in the city of Syracuse, which lies on the southeast coast of the island, after an anticyclone, dubbed 'Lucifer', swept across the country.
The previous highest temperature ever recorded on the European continent was 118F in Athens in 1977.
The temperature in Sicily is yet to be independently confirmed by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
The blistering mercury levels came an anticyclone - nicknamed Lucifer - moved up from Africa and continued to head north across mainland Italy - increasing fears of more life-threatening wildfires across the country.
As Lucifer continued to sweep across the nation, Syracuse's mayor, Francesco Italia, told the Italian newspaper La Repubblica that Sicily's heatwave 'worries us'.
He said: 'We are devastated by the fires and our ecosystem - one of the richest and most precious in Europe - is at risk. We are in full emergency.'
Meanwhile Italy's health ministry issued 'red' alerts for extreme heat for several regions as large parts of the Mediterranean region continue to battle the extreme weather.
It comes after a damning UN report on Monday warned the world is already experiencing the effects of climate changes and that they are set to get rapidly worse.
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