A record-shattering heatwave continues to grip Western Europe, bringing catastrophic temperatures, widespread infrastructure disruption, and dozens of heat-related fatalities, with warnings that extreme conditions will spread further east in the coming days.
France, one of the hardest-hit nations, entered a second consecutive day of extreme heat on Wednesday, just 24 hours after registering the hottest average June temperature in recorded national history: 29.8°C (85.54°F). Météo France, the country’s national weather service, expanded the nation’s highest-level red heat alert to 58 regions by midday Wednesday, placing more than half of the country under the most severe warning, with 31 additional regions under secondary orange alert.
Temperature forecasts paint a grim picture for the day: the southwestern region of France could see highs climb to 43°C, while much of western France stretching from Paris to Brittany will see maximums between 39°C and 40°C through the weekend. On Tuesday, temperatures peaked at 44.3°C in parts of Landes in the country’s southwest, and by 5 a.m. local time Wednesday, La Rochelle had already hit 29°C, signaling the early onset of another day of sweltering heat. While gradual cooling is expected starting Friday, it will come paired with severe thunderstorms that carry risks of flash flooding and large hail.
The extreme heat has already triggered widespread disruption across France. In the northwestern Finistère region of Brittany, an overloaded transformer failure cut power to roughly 68,000 homes Tuesday evening, with full restoration not expected before the end of Wednesday at the earliest. In the Maine-et-Loire region, more than 150 firefighters battled a large wildfire in the Breignon forest near Saint-Macaire-du-Bois through Tuesday, with crews finally bringing the blaze under control overnight.
Even iconic cultural institutions have been forced to adjust operations. The Louvre Museum, the world’s most visited art museum, announced it would move its closing time from 6 p.m. to 4 p.m. local time from Wednesday through Saturday, noting that its historic, aged structure was not built to withstand the extreme heat amplified by high visitor volumes at the end of the day.
The human cost of the heatwave has been steep. French Prime Minister confirmed that 40 people have died in heat-related drowning incidents across France since last Thursday, among them a 13-year-old non-swimmer who drowned while swimming in the River Seine over the weekend. Fatal drowning incidents have also been reported in neighboring Germany.
The extreme weather is far from contained to France. After days of record heat in Spain, temperatures are beginning to drop across the Iberian Peninsula on Wednesday, though red alerts remain active for parts of northern Spain, where the Basque Country could see highs reach 42°C. In Italy, 16 provincial capitals are now under red heat warnings, with Latina added to the high-risk list Wednesday and Bari set to join Thursday.
The heatwave is projected to spread north and east over the coming days. The Netherlands’ national weather service KNMI has issued an orange alert for dangerous heat across central and southern regions from Wednesday through at least Friday, with maximum temperatures forecast to hit 37°C this week and climb to 39°C by Friday. In Belgium, most of the country is under an orange heat alert with highs of 37°C expected, and the nation’s Risk Management Group has activated its national ozone and heat plan alert phase — only the second time the measure has been used, following the 2020 August heatwave. Belgium has not announced new mandatory measures, but has urged the public to take extra precautions for high-risk groups including the elderly and children. Temperatures are projected to peak in the Netherlands and Belgium on Friday, while Germany will see highs reach 40°C over the weekend. Further east, severe heat warnings have already been issued for Poland, Croatia, and Hungary for later this week.
Climate scientists have long warned that such frequent, intense heatwaves are the direct consequence of human-caused climate change. Data from the Copernicus Climate Change Service confirms Europe is the fastest-warming continent on Earth, heating at twice the rate of the global average. This rapid warming has led to more frequent extreme summer heatwaves, increased strain on regional water supplies, and more intense, destructive wildfires. In 2023, Europe saw a record 1 million hectares of land burned by wildfires, with Spain recording the largest amount of burned area.