Spain records 1st deaths from summer heatwave as 2 farmers die

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

GENEVA (AA) – First deaths from heatwave have been recorded in Spain as two farmers have lost their lives due to high temperatures, authorities said on Wednesday.

A 46-year-old farmer died in Cinco Casas area of Ciudad Real on Tuesday, Francisco Martinez Arroyo, the minister of agriculture, water and rural development of the autonomous Castilla-La Mancha region, said.

"This heatwave is terrible," Martinez said on Twitter, urging farmers who carry out their work in open air to take protective measures against the heatwave.

Another farmer, 47, died after he collapsed while plowing the land in the Aznalcollar town of Seville on Saturday, according to the Spanish Health Ministry.

During the first heatwave of the summer, which began last weekend and expected to last until Friday, the maximum temperatures were recorded as Andalusia saw 44 degrees Celsius (111.2 degrees Fahrenheit).

A warning for intense heat was issued in eight communities on Monday. Two of them, Cordovan countryside and Seville, has a red alert.