Madrid, July 11 (IANS): Spain is experiencing its second heatwave of the summer with 30 provinces placed on alert by the State Meteorological Agency (AEMET) on Sunday.

Temperatures are expected to reach 43 degrees centigrade in Badajoz in southwest Spain and over 40 degrees centigrade in provinces such as Seville, Cordoba, Jaen and Caceres, which have all been placed on an 'orange' level of alert in a three-tier system, which climbs from yellow to red.

Most of southwestern and central Spain is under either orange or yellow alert, with temperatures predicted to top 38 degrees centigrade in the capital city of Madrid, while other central provinces such as Avila, Salamanca, Segovia, Soria or Valladolid are all under yellow alert, Xinhua news agency reported.

Temperatures are expected to remain unchanged on Monday, but could rise higher still on Tuesday when Aemet has raised the alert level from yellow to orange for the provinces of Zamora, Valladolid and Salamanca.

The first heatwave, which lasted for over a week in several parts of the country in June, was also one of the earliest on record. The June heatwave saw the mercury rise over 44 degrees centigrade in Jaen in southern Spain and top 43 degrees in Toledo in south of Madrid.

Spain also recorded this year the hottest May of this century.

Due to the extraordinary high temperatures, Spain has already been badly affected by wildfires this summer, with over 19,000 hectare devastated so far in 2022, which is twice the average for recent years.

The heat combined with lower-than-average rainfall means that Spain's water reserves is dropping to worrying levels. The latest calculations showed the water level is at an average of just 45.32 per cent capacity. The water level is at just 35 per cent capacity in the southern regions of Andalusia and Extremadura.