(8 Aug 2025)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Madrid – 8 August 2025
1. Wide pan Cibeles Square with tourist bus going past
2. Various of people carrying parasols to protect themselves
3. Woman carrying portable fan
4. Drinks kiosk
5. Various of fans on sale
6. Various of siesta area with hammocks at the Circulo de Bellas Artes Climate Refuge
7. Raquel Benitez and friend in siesta area
8. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Raquel Benitez, 24 years-old, visitor:
"It’s our first time. We’re from the Canary Islands and we’re returning home today. So we’re here to avoid the heat outside until our flight back home. It’s really nice, isn’t it? It’s quite a peaceful place to relax and it’s cool here with the heat of Madrid."
9. People working in Climate Refuge
10. People playing card and board games in Climate Refuge
11. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Santiago Hernández Zarauz, Spokesperson for Circulo de Bellas Artes:
"(It is an) oasis in the heart of Madrid, it’s free from 11:00 AM to 9:00 PM until September 7, where the temperature is between 25 and 27 degrees (77-80 F), which is much better compared to the 39 to 40 degrees (102-104 F) outside."
12. Various of cafe in the exterior of cultural centre with vapor fans
STORYLINE:
With temperatures reaching close to 39 degrees celsius in Madrid, tourists and locals alike have taken to using parasols and fans to cool down, while others have flocked to a free ‘climate refuge’ in the city center.
The Spanish capital, along with much of the country’s south, is experiencing a period of extreme temperatures and the heatwave is expected to continue until at least next Wednesday, according to national weather service AEMET.
The Bellas Artes Cultural Centre in central Madrid has – for the second consecutive year – created a free climate refuge for visitors to escape Madrid’s torrid temperatures, and enjoy a rest, drink of water and perhaps a game of chess.
"It’s really nice, isn’t it? It’s quite a peaceful place to relax and it’s cool here with the heat of Madrid," said 24-year old Raquel Benítez, who was visiting from the Canary Islands.
The climate shelter is located in the center’s ballroom and serves as a kind of covered plaza filled with vegetation.
To make the space more comfortable, furniture and hammocks have been designed by the recycling company Basurama.
More than 300 plants have been loaned by the nearby Retiro Park Greenhouse Nursery.
The Refuge also features the sound installation ‘Permanencia Vegetal’ (Plant Permanence), developed specifically for the space by artist Sayaka Fujio.
Europe is the world’s fastest-warming continent, with temperatures increasing at twice the speed as the global average since the 1980s, according to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service.
Scientists warn that climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness, especially in southeastern Europe, making the region more vulnerable to wildfires.
The burning of fuels like gasoline, oil and coal releases heat-trapping gasses into the atmosphere which drive climate change.
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