In Barcelona, Spaniards flee to heat shelters

DW (English)

With record temperatures in Spain, Barcelona offers around 400 shelters where people can cool off for free. In June, the thermometer in the Spanish metropolis reached almost 38°C. For residents, the heat is unbearable.

Transcript

00:00At close to 38 degrees Celsius, Barcelona has experienced record-breaking temperatures in June.

00:10The heat is unbearable for tourists and residents alike.

00:14But what can the city do to help?

00:18Hi, I'm Marie. The heat in Barcelona is unbearable. We need to cool off. We need shade.

00:24Marie Castro works in a neighborhood café for La Prosperitat, a working-class district in Barcelona.

00:34The air-conditioned café has been designated a heat shelter by the city.

00:40Residents can come here for a bit of relief, free of charge.

00:44It's especially important for those people who cannot go on holiday.

00:49This is a place where they can cool off.

00:55The city administration has set up 400 heat shelters in museums, libraries, neighborhood cafés and parks.

01:03For most, a shelter can be reached in just 10 minutes.

01:07Anyone is welcome to drink some water and cool off in the air-conditioned entrance hall of this museum.

01:14Irma Ventiol is in charge of the project.

01:18Barcelona is one of Europe's high-risk areas for heat-related deaths.

01:26This network is also intended as a precaution.

01:32It's important for people to get to know the shelters.

01:38It's important they know that they exist.

01:40Barcelona also has outdoor heat shelters with artificial or natural means of providing shade.

01:48Gabriel Balano lives in Madrid.

01:51There are no such shelters there.

01:53It's necessary in this humid heat, and we know that the summers are getting more and more relentless.

02:01It's an interesting initiative.

02:04Buildings are rarely insulated in low-income districts like La Prosperitat.

02:09In her neighborhood café, Marie gets to hear how residents struggle with the summer heat.

02:17All Jose Flor has to cool down is a fan.

02:20The houses are badly insulated, and regulations forbid installing an air conditioner on the façade.

02:29It's a disaster.

02:31Most residents here cannot afford an air conditioner.

02:36Who will pay the electricity bill?

02:39According to a university study, heat shelters are less frequently used in low-income districts.

02:45Isabel Anglowski researches climate effects on cities like Barcelona, where 900 people die of heat-related causes every summer.

02:55In working-class districts, 30% of the residents don't go anywhere.

03:03They just stay at home when it gets too hot.

03:06They refuse to go to the heat shelters, ignore them, and stay at home.

03:12This affects the elderly, and women in particular.

03:17Which is why the city is also trying to lower the overall temperature by reducing traffic and pollution.

03:25And by having greener streets and squares.

03:28Barcelona aims to be climate neutral by 2030.

03:32Apart from measures that help to adapt, like shelters, we're also trying to control the heat island effect.

03:42We're experimenting with reflective and water permeable pavements.

03:47And in places where planting trees is impossible, we're creating more shade artificially.

03:53The neighborhood café in La Prosperitat is surrounded by a sea of concrete.

04:01An artificial beach is being created on the square.

04:03Marie hopes that areas less visited by tourists will soon also be greened.

04:10Creating more green spaces in Barcelona is a step in the right direction.

04:16Perhaps we'll have more greenery in the future.

04:20The summer has only just started, and the city is heating up.

04:28Marie fears that Barcelona will experience more record-breaking temperatures this year.

04:32Outro

04:38Outro

04:40Outro

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