Greece was bracing itself for 45C (113F) temperatures today as a record-breaking heatwave was set to peak after causing hundreds of deaths in southern and central Europe.

Five hundred Hungarians have already died in the highest ever temperatures recorded in the country, while dozens of forest fires have destroyed hundreds of thousands of acres in the region's second heavwave of the summer.

The top temperatures today were expected in central and southern Greece, including Athens, which has already suffered its hottest June in a century. Three deaths were recorded in Corfu yesterday as the elderly struggled to cope with the heat. The Foreign Office is warning holiday-makers attempting to escape the rain in the UK to take extra precautions.

The Greek Government warned people to restrict their movements and stay at home wherever possible. Further forest fires and electricity cuts are predicted. More than a thousand additional fighfighters have been dispatched to fires in northern Greece, while 24-hour fire patrols were carried out across the country.

“The firefighters are really overstretched. It’s an open secret that the majority of the fires are started by property developers, but it’s very difficult to prove,” said John Carr, Athens correspondent of The Times. “There will be luxury villas springing up in then exact places where the fires have struck in the next year or two.”

Tourists in Italy are also being urged to beware of wildfires that have killed four along the Adriatic coast.

Up to a thousand people were forced into the sea, carrying babies and all their possessions, by flames that were encroaching onto the beach in the Perschici region of Puglia.

Two people were burned alive in their car and two others were suffocated by the smoke on a nearby beach. The army has been called in to help evacuate four thousand people from the coast as the fire spread.

“In Rome the heat is terrible, the Romans are staying inside during the day, but the tourists are still out,” said Sarah Delaney, a Times reporter in Rome. “Everybody has a bottle of water, everybody has a hat and there are hundreds of people gathered around the fountains and sneaking a foot into the water.”

In Hungary, the authorities are counting the cost of temperatures that hit 41.9C (107.4F) in the southern city of Kiskunhalas – the highest ever recorded in the country.

Ferenc Falus, the chief medical officer, said in the last week the heat in central Hungary “contributed to the early death of 230 people, which nationally means about 500 deaths”.

Most of the deaths were attributed to heatstroke, cardiovascular problems and other illnesses aggravated by high temperatures.

Bulgaria also reached its highest ever temperature this week and neighbouring Romania has reported at least 12 deaths. Romanian authorities said the heat has resulted in 19,000 people being admitted to hospital, most often with respiratory problems.

The heatwave is due to peak this week and then begin to ebb away, although there is very little rain forecast for much of southern Europe.

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