Heatwave over, says Met Office, but temperatures to remain high

The heatwave that has engulfed Malta for the past seven days appears to be over, according to the Meteorological Office, although temperatures are expected to remain high.

Giving a round-up of the past week's extreme weather, the Met Office said that during the heatwave, it recorded the highest temperature measured in July in more than a century: 43.3°C.

The record was registered on Saturday, July 18, and was just 0.5°C below Malta’s all-time highest temperature of 43.8°C, recorded in August 1999.

“The first heatwave of 2026 began on Thursday, July 16, when temperatures reached 38.1°C,” the Met Office said.

Although the temperature dropped slightly to 36.8°C the following day, it remained more than 5°C above July’s mean maximum temperature of 31.7°C.

Temperatures consistently exceeded 38°C from then onwards, with the maximum recorded by the Meteorological Office remaining above 42°C over the final three days of the heatwave.

“This marked the first time on record that temperatures exceeded the 42°C mark for three consecutive days,” the Met Office said.

The extreme temperatures prompted it to issue a red weather warning, its highest warning level.

The Met Office said the heatwave was caused by a bulge of high pressure stretching from North Africa across the central Mediterranean, sandwiched between two cooler low-pressure systems.

“Meteorologists call this weather pattern an Omega Block because, on weather maps, it resembles the Greek letter Ω,” it said.

“It is a slow-moving system, which is why the hot and dry weather continued over the central Mediterranean for such a prolonged period.”

Although the heatwave is expected to end on Wednesday, the Met Office cautioned that substantially cooler weather was not on the way.

“Temperatures over the coming days are forecast to return closer to the July climatic average, ranging between 33°C and 35°C,” it said.

“These temperatures are still considered high.”

The Met Office is expected to issue a yellow weather warning, encouraging the public to continue avoiding prolonged exposure to direct sunlight and to follow heat-related advice issued by the health authorities.

Winds are expected to shift to an east-southeasterly direction overnight, causing humidity levels to rise and making conditions feel more uncomfortable.

“On Friday, moderate to rather strong northwesterly winds are forecast, offering some temporary relief from the heat,” the Met Office said.

However, it added that those conditions would be short-lived, with winds expected to veer back towards a southerly direction over the weekend.

Public health authorities activated Malta’s Heat Health Action Plan as the heatwave intensified, opening 14 cooling centres across Malta and Gozo for people considered particularly vulnerable to extreme temperatures.

Access to the centres was restricted to people aged over 75 who have diabetes or chronic kidney disease, as well as people taking lithium. Just four people had used the facilities by Tuesday, according to figures provided to Times of Malta.

The heatwave has also affected the waters surrounding the Maltese islands, with sea temperatures rising well above the long-term average for this time of year.

Experts have warned that prolonged periods of unusually warm water can place stress on seagrass meadows, coral communities and rocky reef habitats, while increasing the risk of marine disease and mortality.

The public is advised to continue drinking water regularly, avoiding unnecessary exposure to direct sunlight and checking on elderly or otherwise vulnerable people, despite the end of the official heatwave.