In Rome, the authorities have raised the heatwave alert to red, the maximum level that poses risks to the entire population. For its part, the NGO Greenpeace has used thermal cameras to measure the temperature of the ground, from the Vatican to the Colosseum via Piazza Navona. In full sun, it exceeds 50°C. Romans and tourists are therefore trying to adapt using fountains.
2 min
With our correspondent in Rome, Anne Le Nir
A few meters from the majestic Piazza Navona, under a scorching sun, two Australian friends, Jennifer and Jane, hurry with their empty mini-bottles in front of a fountain with crystal clear water. It’s great for filling water bottles ” exclaims Jennifer. “ Ah, it’s really too hot! It’s a beautiful city, so we’ll come back in the cool season “, adds Jane.
A little further on, towards the Pantheon, we meet James, a British septuagenarian, adopted by Rome and who knows all the drinking fountains. “I use them all the time, this one, “the Fountain of the Nipples”, has fantastic water,” explains James. And then there are also the nasoni [des fontaines avec un bec en forme de grand nez, très pratique pour boire directement l’eau, NDLR]. When tourists see me drinking, often the “mamma” shouts “no no !” “.
Free water
Indeed, not all tourists know that you can get a drink for free. Testimony of François who lives in United Kingdom with his little family.
” We buy bottled water all the time because we come from London and there was a scandal with the tap water. [une centaine de cas d’infections d’origine hydrique liées à la consommation d’eau courante insalubre au Royaume-Uni dans le courant du mois mai dernier, NDLR]. So we drink mineral water ” explains the tourist.
So good to know, the quality of the water in the fountains of the Eternal City is scrupulously controlled by the health authorities.
Read alsoHeatwave: more than 60,000 deaths in Europe during the summer of 2022, and the forecasts are pessimistic