France remains a hotbed, which woke up for the seventh day in conditions of heatwave, despite the brief respite brought by a few drops of rain.
Following the record-breaking temperatures of recent days, the healthcare system is under strain. Emergency room visits have risen dramatically, as the prolonged heat has significantly increased cases of heat exhaustion, dehydration, and respiratory problems, particularly among the elderly and vulnerable groups.
Authorities are implementing emergency measures, banning alcohol in public spaces starting at 6 p.m. At the same time, they are urging citizens to exercise increased caution, stay well-hydrated, and limit travel during the hottest hours of the day.
“There is clearly an increase in deaths […] I repeat that emergency measures are necessary to protect ourselves and to stay hydrated. And above all, we must not believe that we are invulnerable,” said the mayor of Paris, Emmanuel Grégoire.
An 18-month-old baby died after being found suffering from heatstroke on Tuesday inside a car parked in the parking lot of a university hospital in Marseille, the university told the French Press Agency today, without specifying the exact date of the death.
Temperatures hit a new record over the past 24 hours in Britain, reaching 36.7 degrees Celsius in the southwestern regions. Authorities are reporting the highest June temperature since 1976, issuing a heat wave warning for the third consecutive day across much of the country.
In Germany, where temperatures are expected to exceed 40 degrees Celsius, citizens are desperately seeking ways to cool off. Authorities in Cologne have warned of the serious dangers of swimming in rivers, as drowning incidents are on the rise.
In Italy, Greenpeace activists, in collaboration with labor unions, released a video that they claim was filmed in Rome and shows delivery workers and construction workers laboring in extreme heat. The footage was shot on a day when the city was under a red alert. Thermal cameras in the video record ground temperatures ranging from 36 to nearly 100 degrees Celsius.
With at least 101 million Europeans sweltering in recent days in temperatures above 35 degrees Celsius, scientists confirm in a new study that climate change is responsible for the unprecedented heat in western and central Europe.
“This analysis reaches a conclusion that comes as no great surprise: climate change has significantly increased the intensity of the heatwave we are experiencing today. In fact, Europe is one of the fastest-warming regions on the planet—warming faster than any other landmass, with the exception of the Arctic,” notes Claire Barnes, a researcher on extreme weather and climate at Imperial College.
According to the study’s findings, nearly half of Europe’s 850 largest cities are currently experiencing the worst heat stress in their history.
