Swedish town hottest in Europe

Markusvinsa in northern Sweden was the hottest place in Europe on Friday as many parts of the country continued to bask in sweltering heat.

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According to reports on Sveriges Radio (SR), the temperature in the town, south of Pajala in the Torne Valley reached 33.5 degrees Celsius at one stage, with locals looking forward to continued good weather over the next few days.

However, the extreme weather in the north is not especially unusual, according to the weather agency SMHI.

"The past two years especially have been warm in the north," Anna Hagenblad, meteorologist at SMHI, told news agency TT.

The fact that at the same time it is also cool in the south is just a coincidence.

"There just happens to be very warm winds blowing from the east over northern Sweden at the same time as the cold Atlantic winds are blowing over southern Sweden”, she adds.

The good weather enjoyed by the majority of Swedes this week looks like it will continue over the weekend for most, although it is not good news for everyone.

There have been widespread warnings of thunderstorms in several pockets of the country with cooler temperatures in southern Sweden. Malmö, for example, is not expected to top 19 degrees.

However, the end of the weekend could see a switch, with warmer weather on its way south and the northern parts experiencing considerably lower temperatures again, SMHI forecasts.

Meanwhile, the hot weather at home has meant bad news for travel companies, many of whom have been forced to slash prices for foreign holidays in recent days as Swedes chose to stay at home instead.