Opening summary: UK heat set to break records; half of France under red alert after deaths
Welcome to today’s coverage of the deadly heatwave in Europe.
Rare red warnings have been issued in the UK over extreme temperatures that are set to hit record highs for June this week as a fierce heatwave grips Europe.
Forecasters say the heatwave could see temperatures hit 38C to 40C in some parts of England and Wales, smashing the June record set in 1976 by several degrees as human-driven climate change intensifies the impact of a “heat-dome” settling over western Europe.
In France a heatwave red alert has been issued to more than half of the country’s departments, affecting about 39 million people, and at least 18 have died – including two children left in a hot car – since the weekend.
French prime minister Sebastien Lecornu was scheduled to hold a crisis meeting on Tuesday, an aide said. More than 1,350 schools have been shut due to the heat.
The UK’s hot conditions – which had been very rare there until now – would be accompanied by high humidity and very warm nights, which would make it hard for people to recover overnight, forecasters said.
Italy on Monday issued heatwave red alerts for 12 cities. In France a nuclear plant in the south-west near Toulouse switched off a reactor because cooling water drawn from a nearby river had got too warm, a spokesperson said.
In other developments:
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In south-east France, emergency services were unable to resuscitate two children, aged two and four, who were found unconscious by their mother in the family car outside their home on Monday, a prosecutor in Carpentras said.
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The deaths followed those of three elderly people, aged between 80 and 95, who died near Bordeaux over the weekend as a result of health problems caused by the extreme temperatures, an official said. Thirteen more drowned in swimming accidents.
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In San Sebastian, in Spain’s traditionally cooler north, the temperature was set to reach 40C, more than double the city’s historic average for 22 June, according to the Reuters Climate Monitor.
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Belgium’s heatwave is forecast to last a week with temperatures “the hottest ever recorded”, warned the IRM meteorological institute’s head of forecasting.
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Paris was due to register its highest temperature for June, reaching 38.4C, according to preliminary numbers from the Meteo-France.
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Germany saw a spike in fatal swimming accidents, with authorities reporting five deaths over the weekend. Police said on Monday that several heat-stricken passengers were treated by emergency services at Frankfurt airport the previous day after their plane was held for more than an hour on the apron before take-off.
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In Spain, temperatures were 5-10C above normal for this time of year, and more than 10C in some northern areas, the Aemet weather agency said.
With news agencies
Key events
Nearly all of Spain was under a heat alert on Tuesday, with parts of the south and north of the country placed on the highest warning level, AFP reports.
National weather agency AEMET issued red alerts – a warning for “extraordinary danger” – for areas around the southern city of Cordoba, the northern city of Bilbao and parts of the northern region of Cantabria.
Temperatures of up to 40C in the shade were forecast in parts of the Basque Country on the border with France, an area where such extreme heat is relatively uncommon.
Large swathes of central and northern Spain were placed under orange alerts – the second-highest level– while most of the remainder of the country was covered by yellow warnings. Only areas on the coastline escaped heat alerts.
France experienced its hottest night from Monday to Tuesday since measurements began in 1947, the national weather agency said.
The national temperature indicator – an average of readings from 30 stations across France – reached 21.6C, according to preliminary figures taken Tuesday morning. The previous record was 21.4C, set on July 25, 2019.
Jillian Ambrose
The heatwave has triggered a surge in electricity market prices across Europe this week to levels usually reserved for the middle of winter.
As millions turn to air conditioning to counter the rising temperatures, the high pressure heat dome affecting much of Europe has caused wind speeds to drop, limiting the continent’s renewable energy.
The higher temperatures also led to the unplanned shutdown of a major French nuclear plant by limiting its access to cooling water needed to run its reactors. French utility EDF expects the reactor to remain offline until temperatures return to normal next week.
The combination of rising electricity demand and falling low-carbon generation has caused prices to climb to multi-year highs.
In Germany, Europe’s biggest electricity market, wholesale prices will reach highs of €545.51 per megawatt-hour this evening, the highest since June 2024, according to the Epex Spot exchange.
In France, the price at the same time will climb to €268.67 per megawatt-hour, the highest since August 2023. UK power markets show a price of almost £230/MWh for this evening from 8pm, almost three times the average price of £86.28/MWh in June last year.
Jakub Krupa
Poland is bracing for the heatwave to hit this weekend as it moves eastwards from France and Germany. Temperatures are expected to peak on Sunday, reaching up to 38C in the capital, Warsaw, and up to 41C in the Lower Silesia region.
If the forecasts are accurate, temperatures could smash the June record for Poland – 38.2C, set in 2019 – or even the all-time national record of 40.2C from 1921.
The government’s security agency, the RCB, has issued advice urging Poles to limit time spent outdoors, drink plenty of water and cover their heads when in direct sunlight.
Steven Morris
Fire services are worried that there could be a spate of wild fires in the hot weather.
Dorset and Wiltshire fire and rescue service asked farmers and businesses to postpone “controlled” burns.
It said on Tuesday: “To reduce the risk of wildfires during these hot and dry conditions, we urge everyone to refrain from conducting prescribed or controlled burns unless absolutely essential. These fires can easily spiral out of control and spread rapidly.”
Devon and Somerset fire and rescue service issued wider advice including:
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Don’t have campfires or barbecues in the countryside. Only have them in safe designated areas.
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Avoid having bonfires in very dry weather. If you must have a bonfire,
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Glass in direct sunlight can cause fires – ensure there is none lying around.
Here are some of the latest photos from the heatwave in Europe.
Damian Carrington
People are already paying the price for the UK government’s inaction in protecting them from the climate crisis, says Holly Brazier Tope, Director of Politics at the Green Alliance.
“We built and planned our homes and communities for a UK that isn’t this hot, and right now, people are paying the price. Schools are closing early, NHS appointments are being cancelled, trains are running late. This is the reality of climate change on our doorstep and successive governments have left people to face it unprotected. Without urgent action, 92% of existing homes could overheat by mid-century and heat-related deaths could rise to 10,000 a year.
“In the summer of 2022, we lost more people to heat than were killed on our roads in the entire year. And yet government did not act. This is not a future threat. It is here, it is now, and it is the consequence of inaction. This government must respond fast with a systemic, nationwide response that delivers smarter planning, community resilience, protection now and net zero for the future.”
You can read the recent verdict of the UK government’s official advisers, the Climate Change Committee here: UK ‘built for climate that no longer exists’ and needs urgent changes to survive global heating, report warns
London Fire Brigade (LFB) said it had responded to around 400 calls overnight, including two house fires believed to be caused by lightning strikes and flooding of homes.
Thunderstorms following soaring temperatures caused flash flooding in the capital, the LFB said as it urged drivers not to drive through flooded areas.
There is severe disruption across London’s transport network on Tuesday, in part caused by the extreme weather.
On the Elizabeth Line, heavy rain has caused flooding which means there is no service between Heathrow Terminals 2 and 3 and Heathrow Terminal 4, Transport for London said. Meanwhile, there are severe delays between Paddington and Heathrow Terminal 5 and Reading due to an earlier points failure at Southall.
There are also severe delays on the Mildmay Line, which is running a reduced service because of the hot weather.
The Metropolitan Line remains partly suspended between Baker Street and Aldgate, while the Hammersmith and City Line is also suspended between Barking and Moorgate. The entire Circle Line has been suspended, as have parts of the District Line.
The UK Met Office said 29,074 lightning strikes have been recorded in the UK in the last 24 hours to 9am on Tuesday.
All of these strikes were over England, with the majority – 18,540 – over Somerset.
The Met Office’s lightning map also shows there have been hundreds more strikes across south-east England on Tuesday morning.
The highest overnight temperature was 20.4C in Gosport, Hampshire, while eight other place recorded a tropical night, meaning one where temperatures do not fall below 20C.
These were Crosby, in Merseyside, Plymouth and North Wyke, in Devon, Aberporth, Cardiff and St Athan in Wales, Hurn in Dorset and the Isle of Wight.
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