Heat has moved from the Iberian Peninsula to the east of Europe. A new hot‑spot is brewing in Germany and the Czech Republic, where temperatures are projected to climb to 40 °C and will be eligible to trigger extreme‑weather alerts. In France, policy‑makers have escalated the national health alert to its highest tier to help hospitals cope and safeguard the most vulnerable.
The French government says record highs may peak in June, with bottom‑night temperatures surging to 22 °C on Wednesday. In Nantes the average minimum was 27.2 °C, a figure that signals the heat is lingering far longer than in previous years.
Health Minister Stéphanie Rist admitted that the heat had begun killing people of all ages – from seniors to young adults – a troubling trend that was evident in hospital admissions across Paris and southern France.
Paris Mayor Emmanuel Grégoire warned residents to suspend intense exercise for several days, citing a rise in heart‑related incidents. He urged people to take a break from jogging in the city’s heat.
The danger is real – a three‑year‑old was found dead in a car in the Paris region, and previous fatalities of young children were reported in the southern town of Carpentras.
Across France, the southern city of Rennes recorded 40.6 °C on Monday and then topped that with 41 °C on Tuesday, pushing emergency units to their capacity and causing an “extreme surge” of activity.
In Germany, the DWD meteorological service said many regions were experiencing severe heat stress. In the southwestern town of Bad Bergzabern temperatures never fell below 26 °C on the night of Wednesday, matching a historic national record from 2019.
The Czech Republic issued an extreme‑weather warning, forecasts the heat will intensify on Friday and could reach 40 °C over the weekend. In Austria’s Vienna and the UK’s Metropolitan regions the heat is expected to cross the 40‑degree threshold.
Italy is also feeling the pressure, with Florence’s Uffizi museum halting ticket sales until mid‑month because air conditioning could not handle the visitor load. Winter‑evening temps might stay above 29 °C in the north, according to Italian forecasters.
The European Union’s Copernicus satellite data underscore the scale of the event – land surface temperatures across France were high enough to destabilize ecosystems and threaten human health, illuminating how climate change is magnifying Europe’s summer extremes.
UN climate chief Simon Stiell emphasised that the current heatwave is a stark reminder of the climate crisis, calling for a shift toward renewables, forest protection and resilience improvements across the continent.
With Europa’s heatwave now moving eastwards, authorities across the continent are scrambling to say goodbye to normalcy and embrace a far hotter, more volatile season.
