Report: Drought in Europe is the worst in 500 years

The report says that two-thirds of Europe is under some drought warning, likely the worst such event in 500 years.

47% of Europe is in "warning" conditions, which means the soil has dried up, says the latest report from the Global Drought Observatory. Another 17% is on alert, indicating that vegetation "shows signs of stress." The report of GDO warns that the dry spell will spark wildfires, hit crop yields, and may last several months more in some southern regions of the continent.

Compared with the previous five years' standard, EU harvest projections are down 15% for soybeans, 12% for sunflowers, and 16% for grain maize. The drought observatory is part of the research wing of the European Commission. Responding to the report, the Commission warned that initial data suggests "the current drought still appears to be the worst since 500 years".

The report warned that nearly all of the rivers in Europe have dried up to some extent. The report alerts that the situation is deteriorating in countries including France, Portugal, Spain, Italy, Germany, Romania, Luxembourg, Belgium, the Netherlands, Hungary, Ireland, Moldova, Ukraine, Northern Serbia, and the UK.