Greece restricts outdoor work as temperatures rise again

ATHENS (Reuters) – Greece has ordered some businesses not to allow their employees to carry out heavy tasks outdoors in the afternoon this week as the country simmers in yet another heatwave.

Builders, food couriers, delivery men and shipbuilders are among those who will have to stop work from noon to 5pm from Tuesday to Friday as the mercury is expected to reach 42-43 Celsius in parts of Greece, the Ministry of Labour.

Several regions of the world, from the United States to India, have also suffered this summer from extreme heat that has caused power cuts and forest fires.

Greece has repeatedly seen high temperatures disrupt daily activities since June and hundreds of forest fires have broken out, fueled by strong winds, following the warmest winter on record, which scientists link to global climate change.

Forecasters say temperatures won’t drop much before the end of the month.

With most of Greece experiencing little or no rain in recent months, many of its islands, which attract millions of tourists during the summer, are also facing water shortages.

“Sometimes I feel headaches, dizziness and blurred vision,” said Adamantia Krassa, a 44-year-old municipal cleaner.

“In such high temperatures, I believe we should stop working after a certain hour, take a break and then resume.”

A Red Cross mobile unit was stationed in Syntagma Square in central Athens to offer assistance to passersby.

“We are experiencing a prolonged period of high temperatures. All this physical wear and tear has negative effects on the human body”, said the unit’s coordinator, Dimitra Tsekoura.

At least six tourists, including well-known British television presenter Michael Mosley, died last month in the intense heat.

(Reporting by Valentini Anagnostopoulou and Angeliki Koutantou; Editing by Gareth Jones)