As we leave behind the first half of the summer and enter August, many people who have chosen to stay home in Belgium this year will be be hoping for better weather.
That hope looks like being a forlorn one, according to Frédéric Decker, meteorologist and weather presenter for the RTBF.
For the coming week, for example, from Monday to Sunday, the weather will be colder that usual across most of Europe, with the exception of Italy and Greece. In fact, Greece is experiencing some record temperatures rising to 45ºC.
It will also be wetter across the continent, and the southern parts of Belgium, already suffering the aftermath of flooding, can expect 5-10l/m², while in the northern areas the quantity could be double that.
And the warm weather will stay away for the second week of August too, Decker said. However it will be warmer than now, with temperatures rising to within about one degree of the seasonal average.
Sadly more dashed hopes for the second half of the month. Temperatures in Brussels, for example, are unlikely to climb any higher than 21°C. The last week of the month will see higher temperatures than now, but not as high as might be expected.
And then on to September, with a forecast of mists and mellow fruitfulness. And with the population now back at school and at work, the strong likelihood of fabulous weather.
Yellow alert across the land.
• Meanwhile, in the short term, the Royal Meteorological Institute (RMI) has issued a yellow alert for heavy rain and thunderstorms in all regions, with rainfall of 10-20l/m², higher in some places.
The weather front will cross the country from west to east, largely sparing the coastal area which has its own micro-climate. It is forecast to last from 10.00 Sunday to 02.00 Monday.
The federal home affairs ministry has opened up the special 1722 telephone number for use for emergency cases that are not life-threatening. The normal emergency number 102 should still be used only for medical emergencies.
