A destitute family of 14 visited Al-Zawraa Park in Baghdad on Friday to find a sliver of shade.
"Electricity does not let us breathe. We live in a small house due to our limited resources. The only place where we could breathe was Al-Zawraa [park]. So we came to sit here," said Um Ali, one member of the family.
Ali added: "Many other families have come here. Our biggest problem is electricity. [A lack of ] electricity has hurt us a lot. Neither the children nor the adults can sleep. Nobody could sleep."
Locals, if they are able, often visit Iraq’s northern provinces in the Kurdistan Region to escape summer heatwaves and enjoy the many mountainous resorts, lakes and rivers.
Ruqya Kazim, another family member, said: "Of course, everybody wishes to visit abroad or the north [the Kurdistan Region]. The north is quite different from the south. The south is very hot. Power outages continue."
Iraq’s meteorology and seismology organization on Friday announced that temperatures are set to reach 50 degrees Celsius in seven provinces this weekend.
"The weather for tomorrow, Saturday, will generally be clear and hot with some clouds, and light dust rising in the western region during the day," the organization posted on Facebook.
The weather pattern is expected to remain largely unchanged through Tuesday.
Shoppers and passersby in one of Baghdad's shopping districts are braving the heat with makeshift sprinkler systems and fans, saying they are struggling to cope with the heat amid the lack of electricity in the country.
"If I have to come out of my house I will do it late in the evening because of the high-temperature degrees. Yesterday, it reached 53 degrees Celsius. Today it is again 53 Celsius. I go out only when I have to work. I avoid the heatwave. I take shelter under the shade," said Mohammed Karim, a resident in Baghdad.
Iraq’s health ministry issued instructions to citizens on Thursday, advising them against going outside and exposure to direct sunlight “especially during the hottest hours, which are between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.”
Extreme summer temperatures were recorded across the globe last year, including in Iraq which ranks as the fifth most vulnerable country to water and food shortages and extreme temperatures due to climate change, according to UNICEF.
Scorching summer temperatures regularly reach 50 degree Celsius in southern Iraq. The issue is complicated by water scarcity, desertification, and reduced rainfall. However, a lack of access to basic services such as water and electricity is making it more difficult for Iraqis to cope with the heat this summer.
