Heat wave in Poland causing electricity shortage, drought

WARSAW, Poland — A heat wave in Poland, with temperatures that have reached 38 Celsius (100 Fahrenheit), is forcing the national supplier to cut electricity to factories and other large power consumers for several hours on Monday to take pressure off the power grid.

A period of sweltering temperatures combined with low rainfall has also caused a drought, which has hit agricultural areas in the east particularly hard. The levels of the Vistula and several other rivers have fallen dramatically.

The prime minister is meeting with a crisis management team Monday to discuss how to manage the effects of sweltering temperatures that are unusual for Poland.

The highest temperature measured in recent days was 38 Celsius in the western Polish city of Wroclaw and elsewhere in the area.