A catering employee wipes her face as she works in a small street-facing restaurant during a heatwave in Thessaloniki on July 24, 2025. (Photo by Sakis Mitrolidis / AFP)
Athens: A week-long heatwave in Greece that began on Monday is now expected to last more than a week, the country's weather service said as temperatures on Friday neared 46C.
The National Observatory in Athens said the warmest temperature recorded was 45.8C in the Peloponnese region of Messinia.
In Athens, the highest temperature in parts of the capital was 42C, also recorded in the main port of Piraeus.
Officials once again modified the opening hours of the Acropolis, the country's top archaeological site, for the safety of visitors and staff.
The monument was shut from midday to 5:00 pm -- the hottest part of the day -- in line with usual safety rules.
The Greek weather agency EMY modified a warning note to reflect that temperatures would begin falling after Monday July 28, instead of on the weekend as it had previously reported.
Northern winds are expected to pick up later Friday, raising the risk of fires, EMY said.
A high of 44C was expected in Greece on Saturday, with a maximum of 42C forecast in Athens, the agency said.
