Desert heat coming Malta's way

Southwesterly winds blowing from the desert in Algeria and Libya are coming Malta's way and the mercury is expected to climb sharply in the coming days, a spokesman for the Meteorological Office said yesterday.

Around this time of year, the desert heat starts to intensify and, if the wind is right, these hotter-than-usual temperatures reach Malta.

This week, southwesterly winds reaching the island are expected to lift the temperature to around 27ºC by Friday. However, towards Saturday and Sunday the wind is expected to change, bringing the heat down to the average for this time of the year.

The hottest April day was registered on April 9, 1985 when temperatures soared to 30.7ºC. On April 29, 2002, it shot up to 29.1ºC while on April 30, 1999, the mercury notched 28.8ºC.