'Turbulent and cool weekend' say forecasters

(ANSA) - ROME, SEP 2 - Italy will see a "turbulent and cool" weekend with widespread thunderstorms in the north and centre of the country thanks to the first Atlantic front of the autumn, forecasters said Friday.
    But the weather in the south will remain stable and sunny, said Antonio Sanò, director and founder of the website www.iLMeteo.it..
    And sunny and warm conditions will return to the centre and north from Monday, Sanò said.
    Scattered storms will hit the north-west and Tyrrhenian areas on Saturday, he said, moving on Sunday to the rest of the centre.
    But there will also be ample sunny spells amid the bad weather.
    Temperatures will rise over the weekend in the south, by contrast.
    From Sunday on, hot Algerian currents of air will hit Italy starting from the south and spreading to the rest of the country next week.
    Summer will return in all its basking and steamy glory from September 5, Sanò said.
    There will be peaks of 37-39°C in Sicily, 35°C in the rest of the south and 33-34°C in the centre.
    Temperatures will also start rising again in the north but the shorter days will mean that daily heating will be more contained, Sanò said.
    Detailed forecasts: - Friday 2nd: North: sunny, worsening in Piedmont from the afternoon. Centre: patchy cloud. South: sunny with temperatures rising.
    - Saturday 3rd: North: rain and storms especially in the northwest, also in northeast from evening. Centre: worsening in Tuscany, Umbria and Marche, at night also in Lazio. South: sunny with heat rising.
    - Sunday 4th: North: morning fog in Po Valley, then mainly sunny. Centre: strong rain in Tyrrhenian areas, variable elsewhere. South: unstable in Campania and Apennines.
    Outlook: start of next week sunny almost everywhere: African heat in the far south with 37-39°C and heat rising in the centre and north too. (ANSA).