The small coastal village of Tasarte, in Gran Canaria, was once again the hottest place in Spain on Tuesday, after the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet) weather station located there recorded a maximum temperature of 42.6°C.
The figure was reached at 3.40pm, placing this small neighbourhood, which has a registered population of barely 500 residents, at the top of Spain’s daily temperature ranking once again. It surpassed the 41.6°C recorded in Molina de Segura, in Murcia, and the 41°C registered in Lomo Pedro Alfonso, in the municipality of San Bartolomé de Tirajana, also in Gran Canaria.
The latest reading confirms the intensity of the heatwave affecting the Canary Islands, and particularly Gran Canaria, where several areas have remained under high-temperature warnings in recent days.
The southern, eastern and western slopes of Gran Canaria were once again under an orange warning for high temperatures on Tuesday. These areas have repeatedly recorded maximum temperatures at or close to the 40°C mark during the current episode of extreme heat.
The third hottest location in the Canary Islands on Tuesday was Maspalomas, on the coast of San Bartolomé de Tirajana, where the temperature reached 39.8°C.
The mercury also climbed to 38.9°C at the Aemet station in the municipality of Agüimes, another area that has featured prominently in Spain’s highest-temperature rankings during this heatwave.
The top five highest temperatures recorded in the Canary Islands were completed by Tijarafe, on the island of La Palma, where the thermometer reached 38.3°C. The western slopes and summits of La Palma, together with the south, east and west of Gran Canaria, were also under an orange warning for heat.
These extreme daytime temperatures have come after a night in which minimum temperatures remained above 30°C in many parts of the archipelago. Aemet described the situation as a night of “hellish” heat, with conditions making it especially difficult to sleep in the worst-affected areas.
The current spell of high temperatures is expected to continue on Wednesday, although with slightly less intensity as the mercury begins to ease. Even so, the south, east and west of Gran Canaria will remain under an Aemet orange warning, with temperatures forecast to reach or even exceed 37°C.
Meanwhile, yellow warnings will remain in place for the west and summits of La Palma, La Gomera and El Hierro, the southern, eastern and western slopes of Tenerife, and the summits of Gran Canaria, where maximum temperatures could reach or exceed 34–35°C.
