Europe heatwave shatters records as temperatures top 35C across continent

An estimated 150 million people across Europe were exposed to temperatures above 35C on June 27 as the heatwave moved east, strained public safety systems and pushed authorities from Germany to Italy to widen emergency warnings. The extreme heat has been linked to dozens of deaths in France, and forecasters warned it could linger for days, possibly into the next two weeks.

All-time records fell in Germany, Denmark and the Czech Republic, while Switzerland set a new June temperature mark. Germany’s new high reached 41.5C in Möckern-Drewitz in Saxony-Anhalt, beating a record of 41.3C set just a day earlier near Saarbruecken on the French border. The German Meteorological Service issued extreme heat warnings for nearly the whole country, and police in Berlin sent out two water cannons to spray mist on people seeking relief from the heat.

In Denmark, the Danish Meteorological Institute measured 37C north of Aarhus, the country’s highest reading since measurements began in 1874. The Czech Hydrometeorological Institute recorded 40.8C north of Prague and will publish a fuller summary later. Earlier in the week, France and Britain had already broken temperature records.

The World Meteorological Organization linked the heatwave to health, ecosystems, economic activity, infrastructure and agriculture. Simon Stiell, the UN climate chief, called the event evidence of the climate crisis, and scientists found the stifling heat would have been virtually impossible without human-made climate change. Scientists found that unusually hot night-time temperatures are far more likely than they were two decades ago, compounding the strain on people and power systems that cannot cool down overnight.

Italy’s health ministry issued red alerts for 18 cities, including Milan, Rome, Turin, Venice, Genoa, Florence and Bologna, while the Po River’s sharply reduced flow threatened farming and the ecosystem of Italy’s most important waterway. Health warnings were also issued in Barcelona and across much of Spain and the UK, Bratislava recorded its hottest night on record, and the heat disrupted rail travel, power generation, classes and outdoor events while increasing forest-fire risk across parts of Europe. In France, weak shopping activity forced officials to extend summer sales.