Rome residents face another day of sweltering heat

(15 Jul 2003)

1. Wide shot of Piazza del Popolo
2. Mid shot of child with hand in fountain
3. SOUNDBITE: (English) Voxpop, tourist from Mexico:
"We come from Mexico so we are used to (it) but I mean its always it's too hot, for just walking around, sweating, it's uncomfortable."
4. Various shots of saxophonist playing by fountain at Piazza del Popolo
5. Mid shot of Piazza Navona
6. Mid shot of children washing their faces in water from the fountain
7. SOUNDBITE: (English) Voxpop, American tourist:
"I think it is extremely hot and it makes it almost unbearable during the day time to visit some of the sites you want to see."
(Question: What do you do to cope with this heat?)
"You take the cloth and you continue to wipe and you sit down every time you see some shade."
8. Mid shot of young men by fountain at Piazza Navona
9. SOUNDBITE: (English) Voxpop, American tourist:
"The heat is excruciating, as beautiful as Rome is, it makes it almost unbearable just to enjoy the sites, but I am still having a good time."
10. Mid shot of Piazza Navona
11. SOUNDBITE: (English) Voxpop, German tourist:
"Well, just sitting in the shadow, chilling, drinking water."
12. Mid shot of Piazza Navona
13. Mid shot of Piazza della Rotonda with Pantheon
14. Various of German family eating ice-cream in center of Rome
15. SOUNDBITE: (English) Voxpop, German tourist mother:
"We came from Germany, it was already hot in Germany also, so we lived in Delhi, it was even more hot. I can't stand this heat, plus then you will have a lot of problems with your energy."
16. Close up of German girl eating ice-cream
17. Various shots at Pantheon, rome
18. SOUNDBITE: (German) Voxpop, German tourist mother:
"What can I say? In Germany it's also been hot, all of Europe is having a hot summer this year and you just have to be prepared, you must make sure that the children don't stay out in in the midday heat and that they dress accordingly and have something cold to eat, food that's not too heavy and then go swimming with the kids."
19. Mid shot of people at Piazza della Rotonda

STORYLINE:

Tourists gulped water from bottles and dipped their hands in Rome's many fountains as they tried to cope with Italy's intense heat.

While government officials met to decide whether to declare a state of emergency in northern Italy due to the drought, tourists continued their trek from one historic monument to another attempting to enjoy the city in the suffocating heat.

Local government officials were talking about rationing water in 48 districts in Rome as they struggled to cope with water shortages and newspapers warned of a stiff price increase of up to 30 per cent in fruit and vegetables as farmers suffered from the lack of rain.

On Tuesday morning the temperature in Rome was already 32 degrees Celsius (89.6 Fahrenheit) and is expected to rise over the next few days.

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