Spain endures hottest day of the year as 16 Italian cities put on red alert

A man and a girl cool off in a fountain in Madrid (Andrea Comas/AP)

Spain endured its hottest day of the year Saturday, with temperatures topping 45C, while authorities in Italy expanded the number of cities on red alert for health risks to 16, as a heatwave engulfed southern Europe.

The hottest temperature by late afternoon was recorded in Ecija, Seville, at 46.5C, shy of the country’s all-time record of 46.9 Celsius hit in Cordoba in July 2017.