Temperatures hit 45°C as heatwave shatters records
Spain recorded temperatures of 44-45°C this week, while Italy, Germany, France and the United Kingdom all experienced extreme heat exceeding 40°C in many areas. The UK recorded its hottest June temperature ever at 36.7°C in Somerset. The European Parliament has scheduled an emergency debate on strengthening the EU's response to heatwaves and wildfires, as climatologists warn that such events are becoming the new normal under climate change.
Wildfires force mass evacuations in France and Spain
More than 2,000 firefighters battled multiple wildfires along France's Mediterranean coast, fanned by strong winds and bone-dry conditions. Spain's military emergency unit deployed over 100 personnel and 40 vehicles to fight blazes in the Aragon region. Over one million hectares of EU land burned in 2025, and officials expect 2026 to be even worse. The EU is pre-positioning 777 firefighters from 14 countries in high-risk areas across Cyprus, Greece, Italy, France, Spain and Portugal.
Climate change made the heatwave 200 times more likely
World Weather Attribution's rapid analysis found that the current heatwave would have been "virtually impossible" just five decades ago. Lead researcher Dr. Theodore Keeping of Imperial College London said the chance of such a heatwave has gone from near-zero to an event expected every couple of decades. "About two-thirds of heat-related deaths in Europe tend to be attributable to climate change," he said. As recently as 2003, an equivalent heatwave would have been 2°C cooler due to lower levels of global heating.