There is still no end in sight to the heat and drought in southern Europe.

Fire brigades and security forces have to be prepared to fight a number of fires towards the end of the week.

According to meteorologists, the blistering heat period in Spain and southern France should end on Tuesday at the earliest.

The heat alert is still in effect in 16 of Spain's 17 autonomous communities.

In the regions of Andalusia in the south and Extremadura in the west of the country, temperatures are expected to climb to 44 and 45 degrees Celsius in the shade.

Only the Canary Islands off the west coast of Africa are spared the extreme heat.

In terms of magnitude and length, the heat wave in Spain will be one of the longest since records began in 1975, the national weather service said.

Forest fires on the Atlantic coast

France also said that the current heat wave was particularly intense and long-lasting.

The orange heat warning level applies in eleven departments, and temperatures of around 40 degrees are expected to be reached in some places on Friday.

Forest fires are still raging on the French Atlantic coast south of Bordeaux.

In the meantime, more than 5300 hectares of land have fallen victim to the flames, and more than 10,000 people have been brought to safety.

In France, the holidays began with the national holiday on July 14, and many traditionally make their way to the Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts.

The last concern was the wind, which drove the fire towards inhabited areas.

A rapidly spreading forest fire was also reported south of Avignon on Thursday afternoon.

Civil protection warned of a particular fire hazard in the Rhone Valley there, where the Mistral is likely to sweep over dry areas on Friday and Saturday.

In combination with a drought that has lasted for weeks and strong winds, the heat is also promoting the outbreak and spread of forest fires in Spain and Portugal.

Fire brigade, army and civil defense forces fought numerous fires on Thursday, but so far the authorities have not been too concerned.

State of emergency in Italy – rain on the German coast

Italy has also been struggling with drought for weeks.

The government therefore declared a state of emergency in five northern regions along the Po River, and other regions could follow.

Bush and forest fires occur again and again.

On Thursday evening, the fire brigade announced that it had fought a large forest fire near Genoa.

There is still a risk of fire in Sicily and Sardinia.

In Greece, the fire brigade is once again warning of a very high risk of forest fires in certain areas on Friday.

The warning level four out of five applies to Athens and the surrounding area as well as the north-east of the Peloponnese peninsula and islands such as Crete, Lesbos and Samos.

According to the rescue services, there have been 264 forest fires in the past seven days alone – there have been almost 2,500 since the start of the fire season in early May.

While rain is longed for in the Mediterranean countries, vacationers on the German coast are probably less happy about it.

On Friday, people in the north can expect clouds and some rain showers.

According to the German Weather Service (DWD), on the other hand, summery temperatures and sunshine are to be expected in the south.

Highs of between 16 and 22 degrees are to be expected in the north, and 23 to 29 degrees in the rest of the country.

But the heat wave is also expected in Germany.

For many, it could be life-threatening.

In general, the forecast from North Rhine-Westphalia to Brandenburg predicts mixed weather.

According to the DWD, there may be individual showers near the coast.

There are occasional stormy gusts on the sea.

In the evening it gets cooler with lows of 7 to 14 degrees - in eastern Bavaria there can be thunderstorms, gusts of wind and hail.