A heatwave has killed at least 10 elderly people in Milan in northern Italy with temperatures topping 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit) in the past week, health officials said Wednesday.

Ten people between 78 and 90 years of age died in the Lombardy region on Tuesday and Wednesday from cardiovascular and breathing problems aggravated by the heat, according to the region's emergency health service.

On Tuesday, Italy's Civil Protection Agency put 16 towns on the highest alert, level 3, after humidity raised perceived temperatures to 38 degrees C in Milan, Rome and Naples, and 40 degrees C in Sicily.

The tiny promontory of Cape Carbonara in Sardegna reached a record 47 degrees C.

The sizzling temperatures are set to last until the weekend, according to the Civil Protection Service, which has advised people to drink at least two litres of water a day.

Pukkelpop storm claims fresh victim in hospital: police
Brussels (AFP) Aug 24, 2011 - One of three people listed as being in a critical condition in hospital after a freak storm lashed a Belgian outdoor rock festival last week has died, local police said Wednesday.

"The storm that hit the Pukkelpop festival on Thursday has claimed a fifth victim" Hasselt prosecutor spokesman Robrecht De Keersmaecker told the national Belga news agency.

The identity of the victim -- two of the three were Dutch citizens -- was not divulged.

Monday, the mayor of Hasselt Hilde Claes said that four people died when stages and tents collapsed during last Thursday's hailstorm in Flemish eastern Belgium.

The three-day Pukkelpop festival, which drew some 65,000 fans each day with top international acts such as Eminem, the Foo Fighters or The Offspring on the bill, was immediately halted when the storm hit.